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Henry Liu
Henry Liu (Chinese: 劉宜良; pinyin: Liú Yíliáng; 7 December 1932 – 15 October 1984), often known by his pen name Chiang Nan (江南; Jiāng Nán), was a Taiwanese-American writer and journalist. He was a vocal critic of the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist Party), then the single ruling party of the Republic of China in Taiwan, and was most famous for writing an unauthorized biography of Chiang Ching-kuo, then president of the Republic of China. He later became a naturalized citizen of the United States, and resided in Daly City, California, where he was assassinated by Bamboo Union members who had been reportedly trained by the Kuomintang's military intelligence division.
Liu was born on 7 December 1932 in Jingjiang, Jiangsu, Republican China. When he was nine years old, his father was killed by Communists. When he turned sixteen, he was drafted into the Nationalist Revolutionary Army, and he left for Taiwan in 1949. After leaving the military, he worked for the state-run radio and later as a reporter for the Taiwan Daily News, where he was sent on assignment to Hong Kong, Manila, and the Vietnam War. After marrying his wife Helen Cui Rong-zhi, he became a foreign correspondent in 1967, and moved to Washington DC, where he took graduate classes at American University and worked part-time as an interpreter for the State Department.
Later, his emigration to the United States was said to be motivated in part because he felt the government of Taiwan was suppressing him. He became a United States citizen in 1973–74, around the same time he left the Taiwan Daily News. After leaving the newspaper, Liu published articles, essays and books that were critical of the Chiang family and associated people, including Chiang Kai-shek, Soong Mei-ling, Chiang Ching-kuo, K. C. Wu and Wang Sheng, with books on Long Yun and K. C. Wu planned at the time he was assassinated.
Liu ran two gift shops in Fisherman's Wharf and San Mateo and was a freelance journalist for several publications in Hong Kong and the San Francisco Journal, a US-based Chinese-language newspaper published by Maurice Chuck. After publishing several articles about the Chiang family, he received a letter from General Wang Sheng warning him from publishing a biography of Chiang Ching-kuo. He proceeded to publish an unauthorized biography of Chiang Ching-kuo in 1975, which was formed from three articles he had written in 1975 about Chiang's life prior to 1949. Liu planned to update the biography to cover more recent history, but was once again warned against writing about the Chiang family by Admiral Wang Hsi-ling in 1977. Liu finally revised the biography after a meeting late in 1983 where he favorably received a suggestion to tone down the criticism of the Chiang family from a family friend, former intelligence agent, and his former publisher on the Taiwan Daily News, Hsia Hsiao-hua. Following the suggestion, Liu received US$17,000 (equivalent to $52,700 in 2025) from Taiwan.
On 15 October 1984, Liu was shot to death in the garage of his home in Daly City, California shortly after 9 a.m. Helen Cui, Henry's wife, had noticed two Asian men riding bicycles near their house that morning and the morning before; she heard loud noises in the garage and discovered her husband had been killed. The assassination had been planned by Chen Chi-li, leader of the Bamboo Union Triad, and carried out by two Bamboo Union members, Wu Tun and Tung Kuei-sen. Chen was acting on the request of the head of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau, Vice Admiral Wang Hsi-ling, who had requested that Liu be "[given] a lesson" after writing articles critical of the Kuomintang government. Wu and Tung cornered Liu in his garage, and the three men struggled, ending after Wu shot Liu in the head and Tung shot Liu twice in the abdomen.
Some of Liu's friends suggested the "somewhat gossipy" biography of Chiang Ching-kuo delved into the background of Chiang Kai-shek's mother too deeply, while others suggested he was about to publish some works harmful to some governmental officials. Police ruled out robbery early in the investigation and an ROC spokesman denied government involvement.
Preparations for the assassination of Liu started in July 1984, according to the tape-recorded confession of Chen Chi-li, leader of the Bamboo Union Triad. Earlier, in the wake of the 1979 Kaohsiung Incident, Chen had reorganized the Bamboo Union to assist the Kuomintang-led government in gathering information and suppressing dissidents. In July 1984, Chen and an unnamed "prominent Taiwan movie producer" received espionage training after being inducted into the service of military intelligence.
On 14 August 1984, Chen and the movie producer met with Vice Admiral Wang Hsi-ling, the head of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau, and two of Wang's officials, Major General Hu Yi-min (胡儀敏) and Colonel Chen Hu-men (no relation). During the meeting, Chen Chi-li and the movie producer were told that Liu had betrayed the Republic of China as an agent of the People's Republic of China with his criticism.
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Henry Liu
Henry Liu (Chinese: 劉宜良; pinyin: Liú Yíliáng; 7 December 1932 – 15 October 1984), often known by his pen name Chiang Nan (江南; Jiāng Nán), was a Taiwanese-American writer and journalist. He was a vocal critic of the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist Party), then the single ruling party of the Republic of China in Taiwan, and was most famous for writing an unauthorized biography of Chiang Ching-kuo, then president of the Republic of China. He later became a naturalized citizen of the United States, and resided in Daly City, California, where he was assassinated by Bamboo Union members who had been reportedly trained by the Kuomintang's military intelligence division.
Liu was born on 7 December 1932 in Jingjiang, Jiangsu, Republican China. When he was nine years old, his father was killed by Communists. When he turned sixteen, he was drafted into the Nationalist Revolutionary Army, and he left for Taiwan in 1949. After leaving the military, he worked for the state-run radio and later as a reporter for the Taiwan Daily News, where he was sent on assignment to Hong Kong, Manila, and the Vietnam War. After marrying his wife Helen Cui Rong-zhi, he became a foreign correspondent in 1967, and moved to Washington DC, where he took graduate classes at American University and worked part-time as an interpreter for the State Department.
Later, his emigration to the United States was said to be motivated in part because he felt the government of Taiwan was suppressing him. He became a United States citizen in 1973–74, around the same time he left the Taiwan Daily News. After leaving the newspaper, Liu published articles, essays and books that were critical of the Chiang family and associated people, including Chiang Kai-shek, Soong Mei-ling, Chiang Ching-kuo, K. C. Wu and Wang Sheng, with books on Long Yun and K. C. Wu planned at the time he was assassinated.
Liu ran two gift shops in Fisherman's Wharf and San Mateo and was a freelance journalist for several publications in Hong Kong and the San Francisco Journal, a US-based Chinese-language newspaper published by Maurice Chuck. After publishing several articles about the Chiang family, he received a letter from General Wang Sheng warning him from publishing a biography of Chiang Ching-kuo. He proceeded to publish an unauthorized biography of Chiang Ching-kuo in 1975, which was formed from three articles he had written in 1975 about Chiang's life prior to 1949. Liu planned to update the biography to cover more recent history, but was once again warned against writing about the Chiang family by Admiral Wang Hsi-ling in 1977. Liu finally revised the biography after a meeting late in 1983 where he favorably received a suggestion to tone down the criticism of the Chiang family from a family friend, former intelligence agent, and his former publisher on the Taiwan Daily News, Hsia Hsiao-hua. Following the suggestion, Liu received US$17,000 (equivalent to $52,700 in 2025) from Taiwan.
On 15 October 1984, Liu was shot to death in the garage of his home in Daly City, California shortly after 9 a.m. Helen Cui, Henry's wife, had noticed two Asian men riding bicycles near their house that morning and the morning before; she heard loud noises in the garage and discovered her husband had been killed. The assassination had been planned by Chen Chi-li, leader of the Bamboo Union Triad, and carried out by two Bamboo Union members, Wu Tun and Tung Kuei-sen. Chen was acting on the request of the head of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau, Vice Admiral Wang Hsi-ling, who had requested that Liu be "[given] a lesson" after writing articles critical of the Kuomintang government. Wu and Tung cornered Liu in his garage, and the three men struggled, ending after Wu shot Liu in the head and Tung shot Liu twice in the abdomen.
Some of Liu's friends suggested the "somewhat gossipy" biography of Chiang Ching-kuo delved into the background of Chiang Kai-shek's mother too deeply, while others suggested he was about to publish some works harmful to some governmental officials. Police ruled out robbery early in the investigation and an ROC spokesman denied government involvement.
Preparations for the assassination of Liu started in July 1984, according to the tape-recorded confession of Chen Chi-li, leader of the Bamboo Union Triad. Earlier, in the wake of the 1979 Kaohsiung Incident, Chen had reorganized the Bamboo Union to assist the Kuomintang-led government in gathering information and suppressing dissidents. In July 1984, Chen and an unnamed "prominent Taiwan movie producer" received espionage training after being inducted into the service of military intelligence.
On 14 August 1984, Chen and the movie producer met with Vice Admiral Wang Hsi-ling, the head of the Kuomintang's Military Intelligence Bureau, and two of Wang's officials, Major General Hu Yi-min (胡儀敏) and Colonel Chen Hu-men (no relation). During the meeting, Chen Chi-li and the movie producer were told that Liu had betrayed the Republic of China as an agent of the People's Republic of China with his criticism.