Much appreciated in Taiwan, Audrey Tang raises a wind of non-binarity in the politics of her island. A beautiful person who is important to know.
Former hacker, Audrey tang has come a long way, to be today at the head of a Taiwanese ministry, that of Digital more precisely. Adulated as an icon of modern times, she knew how to impose with intelligence her trans personality in a democracy which must face the austerity of Communist China. As proof, Taiwan is today at the top of the rankings of the most open governments in the world and the state is one of the best students in terms of digital democracy. A big thank you to the Minister (invested in 2016), with an incredible destiny, drawn as she went along, which did not follow the main road.
"I think it's easier for us because we don't have a binary vision" subjects, she explained to the France-Presse agency (AFP) a few days before the Pride March which took place last Sunday in Taipei.
An extraordinary minister
An early child, she learned to code at the age of eight, and that without a computer! It blackened pages and pages of notebooks. "I discovered the web when it was just invented, with the possibility that hundreds of thousands of people who do not know each other can act collectively," she told RFI.
From the age of fourteen, Audrey Tang left school to go headlong into the secret world of hackers. "I preferred to work in an environment in which I do my own schedule, "says the self-taught.
His talent was quickly spotted. The city of San José in California makes her sweet eyes. Neither one nor two, she leaves for America. "I’ve been involved in the so-called hacker culture, with people trained at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) or members of the German club Chaos Computing ", she explains to the French public radio station.
From gifted to a figure of computer code, there is only one step. In this hushed universe, she becomes an important person. His career in Sillicon Valley was a success.
After her twenties, the future politician returned to Taiwan and adopted her new English and Chinese names, while changing her identity documents. She also remains very discreet about her "some minor operations " to be a woman, words posed in a text she shared on the Internet.
His political vision
Audrey Tang refines her political ideas within the collective of hackers citizens gOv. RFI reminds us that the activists made themselves known by creating hijacked versions of official government websites. In a "radical transparency", the hacker of the time wanted to allow as many people as possible to identify societal actions.
Qualifying "conservative anarchist ", Audrey Tang is called to take place in government in 2016 by the president Tsai Ing-wen (Progressive Democratic Party). The latter was won over by "her lack of political affiliation and her iconoclastic approach".
The Minister of Digital said, regarding his post, "have more empathy for people who suffer from belonging to minorities. I do not take any particular bias. I take all sides. "
Without a fixed office, she prefers to go from ministry to ministry to be closer to her colleagues.
"My political opinion is Taoism, but I am also a conservative anarchist. And an anarchist, because everything has to be done on a voluntary basis. I do not give orders, I do not receive orders. Here, everyone who works here does so voluntarily, "she shares with RFI.
Citing her gender identity as an asset, Audrey Tang wants the population to participate directly in politics. She also salutes the Taiwanese democratic system, which she believes has emerged even stronger from the pandemic compared to the Chinese "more restrictive" model. In addition, she would like that in Taiwan, being transgender be recognized on the national identity card.
But it is necessary to qualify its satisfaction, in fact Taiwan is a territory divided between traditionalists and progressives. However, let us be optimistic and hope that the minister will continue her career and help the communities.
To go further on this subject, we advise you: "Transgender women cumulate the difficulties: being transgender and being a woman", Marie Cau, mayor