Lien Jih-ching (連日清), an entomologist and public health expert who helped in the effort to have the WHO in 1965 declare Taiwan to be “malaria free,” died on Wednesday.
He was 96.
Born in Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕) area, Lien’s connection with mosquito studies began at age 15 when he worked part-time at the Tropical Medicine Research Institute at what was at the time Taihoku Imperial University, now National Taiwan University.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Lien worked for Omori Nanzaburo, a Japanese entomologist, helping him to develop prevention strategies and treatments for dengue fever.
During a dengue fever outbreak in Taiwan in 1942, an estimated 5 million out of Taiwan’s population of 8 million at the time caught the disease, Lien among them.
He later said that the experience had inspired him to become an expert in mosquitoes and other insects.
Lien led a team that researched malaria prevention strategies to eradicate the disease in Taiwan.
After the WHO declaration, Lien turned his focus to dengue fever and continued to study mosquitoes, the primary vector of both diseases.
Lien is credited with the first documentation of 1 percent of all mosquito species in the world.
Tsai Kun-hsien (蔡坤憲), a professor at the National Taiwan University’s College of Public Health who worked with Lien on several overseas medical entomology missions, yesterday said that Lien never shied from his work even after contracting scrub typhus.
Even in his 80s, Lien led missions to Sao Tome and Principe, which was a diplomatic ally of Taiwan at the time, to help eradicate malaria there and train local public health personnel.
Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) yesterday expressed his condolences to Lien’s family.
Chen lauded Lien’s contributions to entomology, public health and medicine.
The council would ask President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to present an order of praise and commendation to honor Lien’s contribution to Taiwan and the world, Chen said.
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