Alexa
  • Directory of Taiwan

Ashes of French professor and partner scattered at sea

Friends took ashes out to ocean near Taitung according to last wishes

  788
Ashes of French professor and partner scattered at sea

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The ashes of the recently deceased French professor Jacques Picoux and his partner Tseng Ching-chao were scattered at sea near Taitung Tuesday according to the former’s last wishes, reports said.

The 67-year-old painter and retired lecturer of French language and literature at National Taiwan University was found dead on October 16 after falling ten floors from his apartment in Taipei City.

His death was linked to the passing away last year of Tseng, a former agent for Chinese actress Gong Li. Picoux and Tseng lived together for 35 years, but due to the absence of gay-friendly legislation in Taiwan, the French professor was unable to have a say in an emergency resuscitation procedure authorized by Tseng’s relatives for the agent who was dying of cancer last October.

Two sisters of Picoux traveled to Taiwan after his death, and according to his wishes, the ashes of both the professor and of Tseng were scattered into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Taitung, the Chinese-language Apple Daily News reported Tuesday.

About 20 friends of the late couple were present at the one-hour ceremony, reports said. The group traveled from Taipei to the Hualien County harbor of Shiti before boarding a vessel which took them to a spot about five nautical miles from Taitung, reports said.

Apart from teaching French, Picoux also maintained close links to Taiwan’s movie world. He played a part in the award-winning movie “The Assassin” by director Hou Hsiao-hsien, who had reportedly invited him to star in his next film as well.