Qiu Hongda
Qiu Hongda was a Taiwanese‑American lawyer and scholar originally from Haicheng, Fujian, and born in Shanghai. He specialized on international law. He received his Doctor of Juridical Science from Harvard University. Qiu taught at National Taiwan University, National Chengchi University, and the University of [Maryland, College Park|University of Maryland], among other institutions, and was awarded the title of Professor Emeritus at the University of Maryland. He served as President of the Chinese Society of International Law and was elected President of the International Law Association from 1998 to 2000. He also held the positions of Minister without Portfolio in the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China and Ambassador-at-Large for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Biography
Qiu Hongda graduated from the Department of Law at National Taiwan University in 1958. In 1962, he earned a Master’s degree in Political Science from Long Island University and an LL.M. from Harvard University. In 1965, he obtained his Doctor of Juridical Science from Harvard Law School. He served as a research fellow at Harvard Law School. In 1967, he was appointed Associate Professor at National Taiwan University. In 1970, he became a full Professor at National Chengchi University, where he played a key role in establishing The Chengchi Law Review, the first academic legal journal in Taiwan. In 1974, he was appointed as a professor at the University of Maryland School of Law. He later served as the Director of the East Asian Legal Studies Program and was awarded the title of Professor Emeritus. He also served as the editor-in-chief of the Occasional Papers/Reprints Series in Contemporary Asian Studies published by the law school.In 1971, he was selected as one of the “Ten Outstanding Young Persons” of the Republic of China and served in the same year as Honorary President of the reformist journal University. Even after moving to the United States, he remained actively engaged in political discourse concerning Taiwan’s national affairs. He was recognized by President Chiang Ching-kuo and Premier Sun Yun-suan for his insights and was invited multiple times to return to Taiwan to participate in National Development Conferences. He was one of the first scholars to publicly advocate for the lifting of martial law and played a role in the reform to protect the Taiwanese movement, contributing significantly to Taiwan’s democratization.
Qiu Hongda’s classmate at National Taiwan University, Chen Lung-chu also went on to become an internationally renowned scholar of international law. Both were students of Professor Peng Ming-min, a prominent figure in legal and political thought. Chen, a proponent of Taiwan independence, later taught at New York Law School, where he mentored a new generation of legal scholars. The writings of both Qiu and Chen have profoundly influenced the intellectual foundations of contemporary and future discourse on law and politics in Taiwan.
In his later years, Qiu experienced health problems and underwent heart stent surgery. His wife, Hsieh Yuan-yuan, previously worked for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, where she held the highest-ranking position among Chinese employees at the time. She later retired in order to care for her husband. Several prominent Taiwanese officials—including former Vice President Annette Lu, former Secretary-General of the National Security Council Su Chi, former Government Information Office Minister David Lee, and former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Shen Lyu-shun—visited Professor Qiu during their trips to the United States. In January 2010, First Lady Christine Chow Ma also made a special trip to Maryland to visit her former mentor on behalf of President Ma Ying-jeou, during her visit to Washington, D.C. leading the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre. He died in Washington, D.C. in April 2011.
Family
His father, Qiu Han-ping, held a Bachelor of Law degree from Soochow University and a Doctor of Laws from George Washington University in the United States. He was a lawyer and legal scholar, and after the Constitution of the Republic of China came into effect, he served as a member of the Legislative Yuan. In 1951, he became the principal of the Soochow Evening School, the predecessor of Soochow University's reestablishment in Taiwan.His eldest brother,, was imprisoned during his third year at Chenggong High School for involvement in the April 6 Incident. While in his first year at National Taiwan University, he was arrested again on charges of sedition. During the trial, his maternal aunt, Liu Yang, who had previously posted bail on his behalf, suddenly appeared in court and declared that the responsibility was too burdensome and requested to withdraw her guarantee. Upon the judge’s decision to take him back into custody, Qiu Hong-ren jumped out of a courtroom window, sustaining critical injuries. He was rushed to the hospital but died shortly after. His family regarded the incident as a tragedy resulting from political interference.
His brother, Qiu Hong-yi, was an astrophysicist at NASA. After retiring from the U.S. federal government, he co-founded the online publishing company EHGBooks in 2011 with his niece, Hsieh Li-chen, of Han Century Corporation.
Diaoyutai Islands protection movement
Qiu was one of the early participants in the Diaoyutai Islands defense movement. Beginning in 1971, he wrote articles in the National Taiwan University Magazine to introduce the movement to the academic community in Taiwan. According to former President of the Republic of China, Ma Ying-jeou, in April 1971, students at National Taiwan University were launching a movement to defend the Republic of China’s sovereignty over the Diaoyutai Islands. The NTU Graduate Student Association organized a seminar and invited Qiu Hongda to speak on the Diaoyutai issue. Ma, then a third-year law student, recalled being deeply moved by Qiu’s talk. Qiu had an exceptional command of the historical, geographical, geological, and international legal aspects of the Diaoyutai Islands. He repeatedly emphasized that asserting the Republic of China’s sovereignty required serious scholarship and the ability to present concrete evidence—historical, geographical, and otherwise. One of his most well-known remarks, “To assert sovereignty, one must first do the scholarly work,” struck a chord with many student activists at the time. It served as a wake-up call, reminding them that slogans and demonstrations were not enough—they had to learn to investigate and understand the issues. Qiu also underscored that, according to the original text of the 1943 Cairo Declaration, the territories “shall be restored to the Republic of China,” and therefore, the Diaoyutai Islands rightfully belong to the Republic of China.Defending the property of the Embassy of the Republic of China in the United States
Qiu played a pivotal role in enabling the Government of the Republic of China to retain ownership of Twin Oaks, its diplomatic property in Washington, D.C.On December 15, 1978, after the Carter administration announced that the United States would severe diplomatic ties with the Republic of China effective by January 1 of the following year, the Chinese Communist regime began to eye Twin Oaks with covetous intentions. Consequently, before diplomatic relations were severed, the Government of the Republic of China sold its embassy and ambassador's residence in Washington, D.C., to the Friends of Free China Association.
At a time when the U.S. State Department's stance was unfriendly, Qiu meticulously cited authoritative references, including significant British and American judicial decisions, and drafted persuasive memoranda. Through his former Harvard classmate, Elizabeth Dole—who later served as U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Secretary of Labor, and U.S. Senator—he successfully persuaded her husband, influential Senator Bob Dole, to advocate vigorously in the U.S. Senate. This advocacy contributed significantly to the inclusion of relevant provisions in the Taiwan Relations Act, enacted in April 1979. Specifically, Section 4 of the Act stipulated that the absence of diplomatic relations or recognition by the United States does not affect Taiwan's properties and related claims within the U.S.
At that time, this provision was commonly known in academic circles as the "Twin Oaks Clause," largely attributable to Qiu's persistent efforts. It allowed the Republic of China to preserve this historically significant diplomatic property in the United States. Several years later, Ambassador Frederick Chien, the Republic of China's representative to the United States, repurchased Twin Oaks during his tenure, reinstating it as a critical diplomatic asset in Washington, D.C. However, through this transaction, the Republic of China sustained a financial loss of two million U.S. dollars, as the property had initially been sold to a private American organization for a token price of twenty dollars and later repurchased for two million dollars.
In July 2009, Ambassador Jason Yuan, the Republic of China's representative to the United States, presented the Order of Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon to Jason Yuan at Twin Oaks on behalf of President Ma Ying-jeou, in recognition of Chiu's significant contributions to the nation. The presentation of this honor at Twin Oaks was particularly meaningful. During the ceremony, President Ma also made a special phone call from Taipei to extend his congratulations personally to Professor Qiu.
Government and quasi-official experience
Qiu once served as a member of the Preparatory Committee for the National Affairs Conference, a research fellow of the National Unification Council, Minister without Portfolio of the Executive Yuan, board member of the Straits Exchange Foundation, member of the National Unification Council, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and board member of the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange.Experience and Publications in International Law
Qiu held a prestigious position in the field of international law. From 1993 to 1999, he served as President of the Chinese Society of International Law. In recognition of his contributions to the public international law and issues of sovereignty over international maritime areas, he was nominated in 1998 as a candidate for Academician of Academia Sinica. From 1998 to 2000, Qiu served as President of the International Law Association. During his tenure, he successfully brought the Association’s 125th Anniversary Conference to Taipei in 1998. On this occasion, he, together with International Court of Justice Judge Shigeru Oda and several judges from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, as well as renowned legal scholars and experts from around the world, paid a formal visit to President Lee Teng-hui of the Republic of China. The delegation was received with official banquets hosted by President Lee, Premier Vincent Siew, Minister of Foreign Affairs Jason Hu, and Minister of the Government Information Office Cheng Chien-jen. Upon the completion of his term, Professor Qiu was elected Permanent and Honorary Vice President of the ILA. Throughout his life, he strongly advocated for students to engage deeply with international law cases relevant to their own nation, emphasizing the importance of connecting legal study with national context.Qiu served as editor-in-chief of the Chinese and English editions of the Yearbook of Chinese International Law and International Affairs for over 30 years. Beginning in 1981, he took on the role of editor-in-chief of the revised edition, the Chinese Yearbook of International Law and Affairs. Since 1987, he had continued in this capacity for the yearbook. His publications have been collected by the U.S. Library of Congress, the U.S. Department of State Library, and the law libraries of major universities around the world.