Ling Yu-shih

Grace Ling Yu-shih^[1] (Chinese: 凌友詩, born 1962) is a Taiwan-born Hong Kong politician. A member of the Chinese National People's Congress, Ling is known for her pro-China stance and support for Chinese unification after her "Taiwanese Girl" (simplified Chinese: 台湾女孩; traditional Chinese: 台灣女孩) speech.

Ling Yu-shih
凌友詩
Deputy to National People's Congress
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 March 2023 (2023-03-05)
Constituency	Hong Kong
Personal details
Born	1962 (age 62–63) Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Nationality	Hong Kong Taiwan
Alma mater	University of Hong Kong Chinese University of Hong Kong

Early life

Ling's father, a former warship vice-commander from Punyu of Guangdong, retreated to Taiwan in 1949 following the defeat in the Chinese civil war.^[2] Ling was born in a military dependents' village in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The whole family moved to Hong Kong when she was 17. She read Chinese and obtained a Master's in Chinese and Politics at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and a Doctorate in Political Philosophy at the University of Hong Kong.

In 2005, Ling was appointed senior research administrator at the Central Policy Unit of the Hong Kong Government, and then an honorary researcher at the Research Centre for Contemporary Chinese Culture of the CUHK.^[3] A frequent writer at pro-China mouthpiece Ta Kung Pao, Ling became a member of the provincial Political Consultative Conference in Fujian, and executive of All-China Women's Federation, entering nation-level organisations.^[4]

Support for Taiwan unification

After being elevated to the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) as a Hong Kong representative in 2018, she continued expressing pro-China sentiments. During a plenary meeting of the 13th CPPCC in March 2019, Ling, a national of the Republic of China, or Taiwan, publicly praised the One China policy and declared that her birthplace should unify with the People's Republic of China.

Today, I stand at the speaker's podium in the Great Hall of the People. I would like to say that there is only one China in the world, and the only legitimate representative government of China is the Government of the People's Republic of China. I am proud to participate in the country's legal system as a dignified Chinese person!... I believe that in the near future, the central government will be able to make the legal status of Taiwanese residents as "Chinese citizens" clearer, just as mothers recognize their own children so that they can abandon their intolerance and be as honest as I am.

— Ling Yu-shih, in Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference meeting

The speech, in which Ling described herself as an "ordinary Taiwanese girl and an outside visitor from Hong Kong", won 13 rounds of applause from the CPPCC and received glowing comments from Chinese state media. On the other hand, Hongkonger and Taiwanese reacted online with nauseous for her theatrical delivery and forced Beijing accent.^[5]

Ministry of Interior of Taiwan fined Ling NT$500,000 (US$16,300) for violating the Cross-Strait Act due to her CPPCC membership and support of annexation. Ling did not pay the fine and said the act was "unconstitutional" and in violation of human rights.^[3] The Ministry also sought to revoke her Taiwanese citizenship if she was found to have a Chinese hukou or passport.^[6] Ling replied she has no citizenship in other countries apart from a household registration in Taiwan and permanent resident status in Hong Kong. She also said she is "mentally prepared" for the potential revocation, but is more concerned about the plight of the unification supporters.^[7]

In 2021 she recommended enacting a reunification law to punish "Taiwan secessionist", and to blacklist anyone obstructing the reunification.^[8] A year later she was selected as one of the Hong Kong deputies to the 14th Chinese National People's Congress. During the first meeting of the new NPC in March 2023, Ling proposed amending Anti-Secession Law. She recommended the Chinese Government limit the franchise in Taiwan, appointing a "Governor of Taiwan Province", merging the Republic of China Armed Forces with the PRC's, and repealing the Constitution of the Republic of China. Ling added that instead of "one country, two systems", the principle of "one country, one system" should be implemented in Taiwan.^[9] Ministry of Interior issued another fine of NT$500,000 over her comments.^[10][11] In defiance, Ling said she would only consider paying it if Taiwan officials accept One China principle and 1992 Consensus, and criticised the "autocracy" for deterring Taiwanese from unofficial cross-strait interaction.^[12]