Former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) passed away at 7:24pm yesterday at Taipei Veterans General Hospital. He was 97 years old.
The hospital stated the cause of death as septic shock and multiple organ failure.
Lee had been hospitalized there since February, when he choked on a mouthful of milk at home. He was later diagnosed with pulmonary infiltrates and aspiration pneumonia.
Photo: Reuters
The hospital said that Lee had been treated with antibiotics, but that his health had not improved, as his advanced age and diabetes had inhibited his immune system and led to recurring infections.
During his hospitalization, Lee underwent daily kidney dialysis, which removed electrolytes and excess liquids, so that nutrient solutions introduced via intravenous drip and blood infusions would bring him strength.
The hospital said that Lee’s body would remain at the hospital until Lee’s wife, Tseng Wen-hui (曾文惠), and his family, could make further arrangements.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
Yesterday, when a doctor announced Lee’s passing, Tseng was by his side, the hospital added.
During his lifetime, Lee underwent 12 stent procedures, 11 for his heart and one for his vertebral artery — installed when he was 92 years old.
Lee had been diagnosed with colorectal cancer in 2011 and underwent a colectomy to remove the tumor that year. In 2007, he was diagnosed with cataracts, and had an intraocular lens inserted in 2013.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) expressed her deep sadness at Lee’s passing, and instructed the Presidential Office and other government agencies to offer Lee’s family whatever assistance they might need.
Presidential Office Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) said that Taiwanese should thank Lee for choosing democracy at a critical time in history, leading the country out from under the shadow of autocratic government.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) also offered his condolences to Lee’s family through his office, while affirming Lee’s contributions to Taiwan’s democratization.
Ma believes that while Lee’s political ideas underwent major changes after he left the presidency, history would render a just and objective evaluation of Lee’s career, the office said.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday posted a photograph of him visiting Lee at the hospital in May last year.
Lee is most admired not only for his political achievements, but also for his life philosophy, which is full of wisdom, Ko wrote on Facebook.
Lee allowed the nation to smoothly evolve from an authoritarian regime to a democratic one, and he was able to withdraw from the political scene at his peak, Ko wrote, describing Lee as a “hero of the era.”
LONG FLIGHT: The jets would be flown by US pilots, with Taiwanese copilots in the two-seat F-16D variant to help familiarize them with the aircraft, the source said The US is expected to fly 10 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70/72 jets to Taiwan over the coming months to fulfill a long-awaited order of 66 aircraft, a defense official said yesterday. Word that the first batch of the jets would be delivered soon was welcome news to Taiwan, which has become concerned about delays in the delivery of US arms amid rising military tensions with China. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official said the initial tranche of the nation’s F-16s are rolling off assembly lines in the US and would be flown under their own power to Taiwan by way
CHIP WAR: The new restrictions are expected to cut off China’s access to Taiwan’s technologies, materials and equipment essential to building AI semiconductors Taiwan has blacklisted Huawei Technologies Co (華為) and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp (SMIC, 中芯), dealing another major blow to the two companies spearheading China’s efforts to develop cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) chip technologies. The Ministry of Economic Affairs’ International Trade Administration has included Huawei, SMIC and several of their subsidiaries in an update of its so-called strategic high-tech commodities entity list, the latest version on its Web site showed on Saturday. It did not publicly announce the change. Other entities on the list include organizations such as the Taliban and al-Qaeda, as well as companies in China, Iran and elsewhere. Local companies need
CRITICISM: It is generally accepted that the Straits Forum is a CCP ‘united front’ platform, and anyone attending should maintain Taiwan’s dignity, the council said The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday said it deeply regrets that former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) echoed the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) “one China” principle and “united front” tactics by telling the Straits Forum that Taiwanese yearn for both sides of the Taiwan Strait to move toward “peace” and “integration.” The 17th annual Straits Forum yesterday opened in Xiamen, China, and while the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) local government heads were absent for the first time in 17 years, Ma attended the forum as “former KMT chairperson” and met with Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference Chairman Wang Huning (王滬寧). Wang
CROSS-STRAIT: The MAC said it barred the Chinese officials from attending an event, because they failed to provide guarantees that Taiwan would be treated with respect The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Friday night defended its decision to bar Chinese officials and tourism representatives from attending a tourism event in Taipei next month, citing the unsafe conditions for Taiwanese in China. The Taipei International Summer Travel Expo, organized by the Taiwan Tourism Exchange Association, is to run from July 18 to 21. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office spokeswoman Zhu Fenglian (朱鳳蓮) on Friday said that representatives from China’s travel industry were excluded from the expo. The Democratic Progressive Party government is obstructing cross-strait tourism exchange in a vain attempt to ignore the mainstream support for peaceful development
RSS