TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Straits Exchange Foundation Chair Wu Feng-shan (吳豊山) has tendered his resignation after 13 months in the post, reports said Thursday.
At a board meeting of the semi-official body, Wu told members that President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) had asked him about the choice of a successor during a meeting on Dec. 12. Wu, 80, took office in November 2024 and will leave the foundation on Dec. 31, the Liberty Times reported.
Since its launch in 1991, the body has handled more than 9 million messages between Taiwan and China, as it is responsible for practical matters affecting both sides, Wu said. The foundation deals with emergency assistance for Taiwan nationals in China, cross-strait agreements, document verification, and advice for Taiwanese businesses in China.
After he took office, Wu called on Beijing to put disputes aside and work for the peaceful development of cross-strait relations, but the foundation’s Chinese counterpart, the Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits, never responded. However, he said it would be wrong to assume this meant the foundation was no longer doing any work.
He gained prominence as editor-in-chief and director of the Independence Evening Post, a rare opposition newspaper during the martial law era. Wu was later elected a member of the National Assembly, and served as chair of Public Television Service, minister without portfolio, and member of the Control Yuan.
