孫運璿

Biography

Sun Yun-suan (November 11, 1913 – February 15, 2006), born in Penglai County, Shandong Province, was a highly influential technocrat, engineer, and senior statesman of the Republic of China (ROC). Having served as the General Manager of Taiwan Power Company, Minister of Transportation, Minister of Economic Affairs, and Premier of the ROC, he is revered as the “Chief Architect of the Taiwan Economic Miracle.”

Lighting Up Taiwan: Breaking the Colonial Derogation

In 1946, shortly after the retrocession of Taiwan to the ROC, Japanese technocrats departing the island arrogantly declared: “Without us, Taiwan will plunge into absolute darkness in three months.” Sun, then a young electrical engineer appointed to oversee the power grid, led several hundred freshly graduated Taiwanese youth and industrial technicians. They worked day and night across the island. Within a mere five months, Sun successfully restored over 80% of Taiwan’s power grid. When the streetlights of Taipei sparkled once again, Sun’s sheer resolve and engineering professionalism demonstrated the ROC’s firm capability to govern and build Taiwan.

Pushing High-Tech: The Father of Semiconductor Industry

During his tenure as Minister of Economic Affairs and Premier, Sun worked closely with President Chiang Ching-kuo and Minister of Finance K. T. Li to execute a series of visionary industrial policies:

• Driving the Ten Major Construction Projects: Pushed key heavy industry and transportation nodes including China Steel, CSBC Shipyard, Taoyuan International Airport, and railway electrification.
• Founding the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI): Established ITRI in 1973 against bureaucratic skepticism, serving as the technology incubator for high-tech start-ups.
• Establishing the Hsinchu Science Park: Set up the science park to provide tax incentives and state-of-the-art infrastructure, successfully attracting overseas Chinese talents to return and launch tech businesses.
• Fostering the Integrated Circuit Industry: Formulated national policies to sponsor semiconductors and invited Morris Chang to return to Taiwan, writing the legendary prologue for TSMC and other tech giants.

Integrity and Legacy

Sun was deeply beloved for his incorruptibility, pragmatism, and selfless leadership. In February 1984, while serving as Premier, he suffered a sudden stroke and withdrew from active politics. Even in his late years, he remained deeply concerned about the nation’s technological progress and political future. He passed away on February 15, 2006, at the age of 92.

Editor-in-Chief’s Verdict from Taiwan NEXT: Sun Yun-suan was the gold standard of technocratic governance. He spent his entire life avoiding political rhetoric, choosing instead to quietly cultivate the soil with an engineer’s pragmatism and patriotic devotion. It was the unselfish commitment of pioneers like Sun that allowed the ROC to build a world-class semiconductor industry and economic prosperity amidst a turbulent international geopolitical climate. His towering integrity stands as a powerful mirror exposing the greed and incompetence of contemporary populist politicians.