Questions for Professor Yenlin Ku From The Asia Foundation

美國亞洲協會六十週年慶訪問稿，台灣一共三位受訪者

As an accomplished leader, looking back, what do you consider the highlight or most remarkable moment in your career?

I never put my personal career above my commitment to social justice. The present is always my highlight, though it may not be publicly recognized.

I was fortunate to grow up as a member of the “new generation”, self-claimed by the baby boomers in Taiwan, when the future of economy looked bright and social reform feasible. While studying in the US in the early 1970s, the burgeoning feminist movement inflamed my passion for gender justice. Having been deeply involved in the feminist movement in Taiwan since 1976, I was the first feminist per se to publish papers and offer college courses on the island. I also wrote articles, published books and started new organizations collectively with other sisters. In 1998, I became the first femocrat when Mayor Ma Ying-jeou recruited me into Taipei City Government to head the Institute of Public Services and then the Department of Social Services. After leaving public service, I started the Senior Leaders Association in 2010 to turn people’s attention to public policies in an aging society. 

In your view, what are the biggest challenges and opportunities that the future holds for Taiwan?

The biggest challenge is the political polarization caused by too frequent elections and symbolized by party colors.  In order to win votes, politicians resort to splitting the society and causing antagonism among different groups of people. There are few comprehensive long-term policies, but too many short and hasty ones catering to voters’ favorite.

I see hope and opportunities in the non-partisan civil society. Many civilian groups are made up of volunteers offering services and preserving/developing social values and traditional knowledge. The blending of tradition and innovation in the area of health enhancement and social care could be the base for us to communicate with and make contribution to the world.

Based on your leadership experience, what advice would you give young leaders in Taiwan today?

It is important to acquire basic knowledge and academic skills as early as possible. Don’t refrain from learning a new language if someone tells that language capital is hegemony. Try to see the world, understand our neighbors, study history and make your own judgment.

As a former grantee of The Asia Foundation, what are your recollections about the experience and how did it help to shape your career?

I have fond memories of The Asia Foundation and the two representatives, Dr. Sheldon Severinghaus and Mrs. Edith Coliver, whom I had contact with. The Asia Foundation sponsored my trip to the Asian Women’s Forum in Davao in 1985. It was enlightening for me to learn Marxist feminist analysis directly from the experiences of other Asian sisters.

As The Asia Foundation marks its 60th anniversary, what do you regard as the Foundation’s main contribution toward improving lives and expanding opportunities in Taiwan?

The feminist movement in Taiwan has won a leading position in the world by producing many institutionalized results in a couple of decades, such as the passage of Gender Equality Employment Act and Gender Equality Education Act as well as establishing gender equality machineries at various levels and branches within the government. The Asia Foundation’s generous sponsorship for the women’s groups and women’s studies programs from the 1970s to the 1990s added substantial momentum to the movement.