Development of Kinmen County
Since Kinmen became the seat of the Fujian Provincial Government in 1949, the administration of the Fujian Provincial Government in Kinmen can be divided into two periods, before and after the implementation of military administration from 1956 to 1992.
Before the implementation of military administration, except for a short period of one year when there was a separation of military and civil administration, most of the time the governorship of the Fujian Provincial Government was held by the commander of the Kinmen Defense Command, and the development of the provincial government administration gave priority to military needs. Despite this, the Fujian Provincial Government made achievements in the areas of land administration, education, and industries, and also laid the foundation for the development of Kinmen today.
The land reform in Kinmen began in September 1953, when General Hu Lien was in charge of the provincial government, and the initial expropriation and grant work of the land reform was successfully completed by the end of September 1955. The completion of the land reform in Kinmen had a positive impact on agriculture, as sorghum, sweet potatoes, wheat, and other crops saw more abundant harvests than before, which revitalized rural economy and in turn stimulated the development of the manufacturing sector.
In 1952, Hu Lien, the governor of the Fujian Provincial Government, was determined to build up the economy in order to improve people’s livelihood. In consideration that Kinmen was a barren and impoverished place, on the one hand, he encouraged people to grow sorghum, and on the other hand, he planned to set up a distillery to produce liquor, make use of the sorghum, and use the proceeds to develop Kinmen. In the autumn of 1952, the Fujian Provincial Government built a distillery with the help of the military and named it the “Jiulong River Distillery”. It produced “Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor” using the sweet water of Bao Yue Spring and the locally-grown sorghum. At the same time, Yeh Hua-Cheng, the founder of Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor and the operator of the private Jincheng Distillery, was assigned as the technical section chief. Jiulong River Distillery was the predecessor of the Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc., which currently creates many jobs for local people and is a major source of revenue for the county government.
Education funding was the largest item of expenditure after military funding for the Fujian Provincial Government during the integrated military and government period. To raise the standard of education in Kinmen, on January 14, 1951, Governor Hu Lien of the Fujian Provincial Government, ordered the merger of the two private junior high schools, Jinzhong and Jindong. In August of the same year, the Fujian Provincial Kinmen High School was established at its current location in Houpu, Jincheng Township, using military construction to build the 1,000-person Zhongzheng Hall as the school auditorium. Enrollment for eight junior high school classes and one high school class was opened to new students. Compulsory boarding applied to all students, while their meals and uniforms were government funded, with the military offering support for the equipment and teaching staff. The first principal was Colonel Fu Kang, a cadre of the Political Department with experience in educational administration. Kinmen Middle School was the highest-level education institution in the Kinmen area before the Kinmen Division of the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences was established in 1997.
Governor Hu Lien made significant contributions to the overall development of Kinmen. He gradually transformed the “four shortages” (lack of water, food, roads, and trees) of Kinmen into “four abundances” and he became known as the “modern-day benefactor of Kinmen”. In memory of General Hu Lien, the longest road in Kinmen, “Boyu Road”, was named after his courtesy name; “Boyu Pavilion” was set up in the Kinmen Stone Sculpture Park in Jincheng; the third floor of the famous Juguang Tower has a display area for General Hu Lien’s artifacts; and the “General Hu Lien Memorial Hall” was set up in the Peace Memorial Park in the Kinmen National Park.
In 1992, military administration ceased in Kinmen and the implementation of local self-governance began. Prior to this, although the Fujian Provincial Election Committee had been established, it was staffed by personnel from the Political Warfare Department of the Ministry of National Defense. Only the first election for an additional central government representative and county advisory representatives was held, but no election of county magistrates and county council members were held.
After the termination of the military administration, the “coordination of provincial and county self-governance” was one of the important tasks of the Fujian Provincial Government. The first election for the governor of Kinmen County, held on November 27, 1993, was the first election held by the Fujian Provincial Election Committee after the termination of the military administration, which saw Chen Shui-tsai as the first elected county magistrate. In 1994, the first election of Kinmen County council members was held, and 16 council members were elected.
The call for the establishment of higher education institutions also emerged in Kinmen, after the termination of the military administration. In 1997, the Kinmen Division of the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences was established, to let Kinmen have a higher education school first, and then gradually allowing the division to become independent and become a college or even a university. In 2010, the National Kinmen Institute of Technology, which had already become independent and upgraded from the Kinmen Division, was upgraded to National Quemoy University with the active assistance of the Fujian Provincial Government, making it the only independent university in the Kinmen region.
During the military administration, tension between Communist China and Taiwan made Kinmen a dangerous frontline battlefield. After the end of the military administration and the beginning of cross-strait relations, Kinmen and Matsu became the ideal trial sites for cross-strait transportation (commonly known as the Mini-three-links). In 2000, the Legislative Yuan passed the “Offshore Islands Development Act” on the third reading, which introduced trial transportation links between Kinmen, Matsu, and China. The implementation of the “Mini-three-links” not only boosted Kinmen’s tourism industry, but also attracted many residents from Taiwan to move their household registration to Kinmen. To improve transportation conditions, many large-scale construction projects began to take place in Kinmen, including the construction of an additional terminal building on the east side of the Kinmen Shangyi Airport in 2010, the purchase of larger capacity and more stable ships for the shipping lines between Taiwan and Kinmen, and the construction of the “Kinmen Bridge” across the Greater and Lesser Kinmen.
Kinmen is an outlying island and its water resources come from lake and reservoir storage and groundwater. However, with the rapid development of Kinmen and the increase in population, it gradually faced the problem of insufficient water in the reservoirs and lakes, poor water quality, and severe over-pumping of groundwater. To solve the water problem in Kinmen, the Fujian Provincial Government coordinated to solve the use of water resources in Kinmen and assisted in promoting the water diversion from China program. It was finally decided that the central government would subsidize 85% of the costs and the Kinmen County Government would bear 15%, and a contract was signed with China’s water company to divert water from Jinjiang, Fujian Province. In 2015, the two parties held a signing ceremony. In August 2018, the water diversion project was completed and opened for official water supply.
There was only one Kinmen Hospital in Kinmen, with insufficient medical resources, and every time there was a major injury or illness, the patient often needed to be evacuated to Taiwan, causing delays in medical treatment. To improve the quality of medical care in Kinmen and to take care of the health of Kinmen residents, the Fujian Provincial Government actively sought funding from the central government to build the Kinmen Hospital Medical Complex, and construction began in October 2010. The complex was completed and opened in June 2014, adding 474 beds to the hospital and improving the quality of care.
Kinmen County Government. Source: Kinmen County Government
On February 7, 1950, the Women’s League Labor Corps was deployed to Kinmen. Source: Kinmen Culture Park Administration Office (KMCPAO)
President Chiang Kai-shek’s first visit to Kinmen in December 1951. Source: Kinmen Culture Park Administration Office (KMCPAO)
President Chiang Kai-shek and the First Lady visited the Fujian Provincial Government in Kinmen in February 1955. Source: Fujian Provincial Government, “Min Yuan Magazine”, No. 1
The evacuation of Kinmen residents to Taiwan during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis in 1958. Source: “Portrait of an Island”, Cultural Affairs Bureau of Kinmen County
The evacuation of Kinmen residents to Taiwan during the Second Taiwan Strait Crisis in 1958. Source: “Portrait of an Island”, Cultural Affairs Bureau of Kinmen County
Exterior of the Dadan Radio Station in Kinmen. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
ntrance to the Dadan Radio Station in Kinmen. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
Xiyuan Salt Field. Source: Chronicle of the Fujian Provincial Government of the Republic of China
Xiyuan Salt Field. Source: Chronicle of the Fujian Provincial Government of the Republic of China
Main entrance and Zhongzheng Hall of Kinmen Middle School. Source: Chronicle of the Fujian Provincial Government of the Republic of China
On February 1, 1972, the Executive Yuan amended and approved the organizational regulations of the Kinmen County Government, Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc., and the Kinmen County Forestry Bureau of the Fujian Provincial Government. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
February 1, 1972, Organizational Regulations of Kinmen County Government, Fujian Province. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
February 1, 1972, Organizational Regulations of Kinmen County Government, Fujian Province. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
February 1, 1972, Organizational Regulations of the Kinmen Distillery of the Military Administrative Committee. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
August 1972, Organizational Regulations of the Kinmen County Agricultural Research Institute during the period of military administration. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
August 1972, Organizational Regulations of the Kinmen County Agricultural Research Institute during the period of military administration. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
Kinmen Daily News Agency (formerly Kinmen Chengchi Chunghua News Agency. Source: Kinmen County Government
May 1974, Organizational Regulations of the Kinmen Chengchi Chunghua News Agency during the period of military administration. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
May 1974, Organizational Regulations of the Kinmen County Waterworks during the period of military administration. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
April 1975, Organizational Regulations of the Civil Self-Defense Forces of Kinmen County during the period of military administration. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
In April 1991, the Kinmen Defense Command issued the martial law declaration. Source: Executive Yuan
December 1991, the bulletin of the Kinmen County representative election of the Second National Assembly. Source: Central Election Commission
December 1991, the bulletin of the Kinmen County Second Legislative Yuan election. Source: Central Election Commission
In November 1992, the Fujian Provincial Government appointed Chen Shui-tsai as the magistrate of Kinmen County. Source: Executive Yuan
In November 1992, the Fujian Provincial Government appointed Chen Shui-tsai as the magistrate of Kinmen County. Source: Executive Yuan
In April 1993, President Lee Teng-hui giving instructions on matters to handle after meeting with representatives from all sectors in Kinmen County. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
In November 1993, the Fujian Provincial Government notified the Kinmen Provisional County Council to change its name to “Kinmen County Council” when the first provisional county council members were sworn in. Source: Executive Yuan
Kinmen County Council. Source: “A Century of Fujian Kinmen and Matsu”
Kinmen County Council. Source: “A Century of Fujian Kinmen and Matsu”
November 1993, the bulletin of the first county magistrate election of Kinmen County, Fujian Province. Source: Central Election Commission
In June 1996, after President Lee Teng-hui visited Kinmen, he instructed that the surplus from the sale of Kaoliang liquor produced by Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc. should be used for the benefit of the county residents. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
In October 1997, Executive Yuan Premier Vincent C. Siew (3rd from right, 4th from right is Wu Chin-tzan, Governor of Fujian Provincial Government) visited Kinmen. Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
In January 2001, Kinmen County celebrated the first flight between Kinmen and Xiamen. Source: National Archives Administration, National Development Council
On November 18, 2001, President Chen Shui-bian attended the opening ceremony of the teaching building of the Kinmen Division of the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences on November 18, 2001 (4th from right is Yen Chung-cheng, Governor of the Fujian Provincial Government). Source: Academia Historica
On September 4, 2003, President Chen Shui-bian visited the Kinmen County Government (3rd from left is Yen Chung-cheng, Governor of the Fujian Provincial Government). Source: Academia Historica
The exterior of Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor Inc. Source: Chronicle of the Fujian Provincial Government of the Republic of China
December 2005, the bulletin of the fourth Kinmen County Council Member election. Source: Central Election Commission
December 2005, the bulletin of the fourth Kinmen County Council Member election. Source: Central Election Commission
In August 2010, Legislative Yuan Premier Wang Jin-pyng and others attended the inauguration ceremony of National Quemoy University (back row, 4th from left is James Hsueh, Governor of the Fujian Provincial Government). Source: <A Century of Fujian Kinmen and Matsu>
In January 2011, President Ma Ying-jeou officiated at the opening ceremony of the Kinmen Bridge project (front row, seated 4th from left is James Hsueh, Governor of the Fujian Provincial Government). Source: <A Century of Fujian Kinmen and Matsu>
Sample ballot from the 2014 Kinmen County magistrate election. Source: Central Election Commission
Governor Hu Lien of the Fujian Provincial Government planting trees in Kinmen. Source: Kinmen Culture Park Administration Office (KMCPAO)