Ker Chien-ming

Ker Chien-ming
MLY
柯建銘
Ker in 2020
Member of the Legislative Yuan
Incumbent
Assumed office
1 February 2020
ConstituencyProportional Representation №8
In office
1 February 2016 – 1 February 2020
Preceded byLu Hsueh-chang
Succeeded byCheng Cheng-chien
ConstituencyHsinchu City
In office
1 February 2008 – 1 February 2016
ConstituencyProportional Representation №2
In office
1 February 1993 – 1 February 2008
Preceded byHsu Wu-sheng
Succeeded byLu Hsueh-chang
ConstituencyHsinchu's 1st district
Preceded byLai Shyh-bao
Succeeded byFu Kun-chi
Acting Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party
In office
11 March 2011 – 27 April 2011
Preceded byTsai Ing-wen
Succeeded byTsai Ing-wen
In office
11 December 2004 – 15 January 2005
Preceded byChen Shui-bian
Succeeded bySu Tseng-chang
Personal details
Born (1951-09-08) 8 September 1951 (age 75)
Hsinchu, Taiwan
PartyDemocratic Progressive Party
EducationChung Shan Medical University (MB)
Tamkang University (MS)
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese柯建銘
Simplified Chinese柯建铭
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu PinyinKē Jiànmíng
Wade–GilesKō Chièn-míng
Southern Min
Hokkien POJKho Kiàn-bêng

Ker Chien-ming (Chinese: 柯建銘; pinyin: Kē Jiànmíng; Wade–Giles: Ke¹ Chien⁴-ming²; born 8 September 1951) is a Taiwanese politician and former dentist who serves as minority leader in the Legislative Yuan. From 2016 to February 2024, he was the majority leader, after the Democratic Progressive Party won a majority of seats in the Legislative Yuan for the first time.

Early life and education

Ker was born on 8 September 1951 in Hsinchu, Taiwan. His father, Ker Tzu-yu (柯子餘), was a businessman who ran a traditional incense shop, called Ko Fang Mei (柯芳美香行), in Hsinchu. His mother, Ker Chen Tsai-e (柯陳彩娥), died in November 2017 at the age of 98. During the February 28 incident in 1947, Tzu-yu spent time as a fugitive escaping law enforcement. Ker later recalled that, after the incident, his father became a critic of the Kuomintang (KMT) and frequently criticized the party and Chiang Kai-shek at home.

As a child, Ker contracted and recovered from tuberculosis in elementary school; the illness inspired him to attend medical school. He later graduated from National Hsinchu Senior High School. While attending high school, Ker joined the KMT at the request of a military instructor. After high school, he graduated from Chung Shan Medical University with a degree in dentistry. During his time in college, he developed an interest in banned literature, including the magazine Free China. He also attended public speeches organized by activists associated with the Tangwai movement. Also while in college, Ker was seriously injured in a traffic accident that caused a concussion and fractures to the left side of his face. He has attributed difficulties with his speech to injuries sustained in the accident.

After completing his dental studies, Ker began graduate studies in the United States at the University of Southern California, but ultimately did not complete a degree. He instead took the examinations necessary to obtain a dental license in the U.S. He then returned to Hsinchu, where he began practicing dentistry in 1975. He later earned a master's degree in management science from Tamkang University.

Political career

Ker is a founding member of the Democratic Progressive Party and was first elected to the Legislative Yuan in 1992. He represented Hsinchu district from 1993 to 2008, and again starting in 2016. From 2008 to 2016 and again from 2020, Ker was elected via proportional representation.

On 17 August 2022, in the aftermath of then Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan on 2–3 August, China blacklisted seven Taiwanese officials including Ker as "diehard "Taiwan independence" separatists" due to their support for Taiwan independence. The blacklist bans them from entering mainland China and the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau, and restricts them from working with Chinese officials. Chinese state-run tabloid Global Times labelled Ker and the six officials as "diehard secessionists".

On 11 July 2025, during a dispute in the Legislative Yuan, Ker invoked Article 100 of the Criminal Code, stating: "Article 100 of the Criminal Code still exists." (Article 100 of the Criminal Code stipulates penalties for those "intending to undermine the state," with offenders subject to up to five years' imprisonment, which has led critics to regard it as a form of thought crime.) In response, KMT legislator Wu Tsung-hsien also remarked that the DPP had previously advocated abolishing Article 100, and its current attempt to revive it constituted "a betrayal of Taiwanese democracy." Ker countered that Article 100 had not been abolished but was revised and remained in effect. He emphasized that it serves to protect national security and that acts of violence or coercion within the legislature should be prosecuted according to the law. The Kuomintang heavily publicized Ker's remarks, with KMT legislator Ling Tao claiming that Lai Ching-te and Ker would "imitate Yoon Suk-yeol next week by declaring martial law."

References

  1. 1 2 "Ker Chien-ming, Candidate No. 8" 8號 柯建銘. Liberty Times (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
  2. ↑ "Ker Tzu-yu: Perseverance in Diligence, Frugality, and Integrity" 【人物系列】柯子餘－勤儉誠信的堅持. National Cultural Memory Bank (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Hsinchu City Cultural Affairs Bureau. March 2013.
  3. ↑ "Ker Chien-ming's Mother Dies at 98 on Anniversary of Father's Death" 柯建銘98歲母親辭世 與父親忌日同天. Central News Agency (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 26 November 2017.
  4. ↑ "DPP's 40th Anniversary: From the Tangwai Movement to Government, Ker Chien-ming Says Reform Is the Party's Purpose" 民進黨創黨40週年／價值篇-從黨外到體制內 柯建銘：改革是民進黨存在的價值. Central News Agency (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 28 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "Political Profile: Ker Chien-ming Says Politics Is Not About Being a Representative of Good Deeds" 沃草人物誌》「政治不是搞好人好事代表」 柯建銘：我最瞭解王金平的痛苦. Watchout (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 6 October 2015.
  6. ↑ Sun, Yi-chen (March 2019). "An Interview with Alumnus Ker Chien-ming" (PDF). The Journal of the CSMU Dental Alumni Association (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Vol. 25, no. 1. pp. 14–17. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  7. ↑ "Legislator Ker Chien-ming: Biography and Educational Background". Legislative Yuan (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
  8. ↑ "Ker Chien-ming Joined the Kuomintang in High School; Youthful Photograph Revealed" 柯建銘高中入國民黨 清澀照曝光. TVBS (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 7 September 2007.
  9. 1 2 "Ker Chien-ming Recuperates Abroad, Having Previously Recounted Two Near-Death Experiences" 柯建銘出國靜養中！曾自爆2度走過鬼門關 這原因讓他口齒不清楚. NOWnews (in Chinese (Taiwan)).
  10. ↑ "Legislator, Hsinchu City: Ker Chien-ming". Liberty Times (in Chinese (Taiwan)). 2016. Archived from the original on 14 February 2025. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  11. ↑ "Legislators: Ker Chien-Ming". The Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China. Retrieved 13 November 2007.
  12. ↑ "Editorial: Gangsters, gangsters everywhere". Taipei Times. 9 November 2007. Retrieved 12 November 2007.
  13. ↑ Wen, Keui-hsiang; Huang, Frances (15 November 2019). "2020 Elections: DPP legislator-at-large list shows diversity". Central News Agency. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  14. ↑ "China imposes sanctions on seven Taiwan 'secessionist' officials". Al Jazeera. 16 August 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  15. ↑ 林, 敬殷; 王, 承中 (11 July 2025). "柯建銘再提刑法100條 傅崐萁指濫用司法對付在野黨". 中央社. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  16. ↑ "預告綠營罷免前出10奧步　凌濤喊：賴清德、柯建銘下周可能仿尹錫悅宣布戒嚴". 菱傳媒. 16 July 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025.