Canadian lawyer-turned-fisherman shares his Taiwan story

Vancouver, July 19 (CNA) Leo Seewald, a Canadian-born lawyer who became a licensed fisherman in Taiwan, shared his unusual life story at a public lecture held Friday at the Vancouver Public Library.

"I speak Mandarin and Cantonese very well," he told CNA. "I also speak German and French, but my English is the worst."

Born and raised in Vancouver, Seewald would often go out to eat in the city's Chinatown with his family, and at age 10, he told his mother he wanted to learn Chinese.

He first studied Cantonese since that was the dialect of Chinese predominant in Vancouver at the time. He later learned Mandarin after moving to Beijing.

In Canada, Seewald earned a business degree from Simon Fraser University, followed by a law degree from the University of Alberta.

He later worked at a law firm in Hong Kong, a move helped by his earlier study of Chinese.

In 2006, Seewald joined Manulife Financial, a major Canadian corporation. His boss gave him the choice to go to either Taiwan or Indonesia.

"A lot of people told me Taiwan is great and that I wouldn't regret going," he said.

He went on to serve as vice president of Manulife Insurance in Taiwan and chairman of its asset management arm.

It was there that Seewald's maritime explorations began.

He initially toured Taiwan's waters by yacht, but was disappointed to learn that many of the island's harbors were restricted to fishing vessels only.

After obtaining a national ID card five years ago, he was finally eligible to take the required exams to become a certified fisherman in Taiwan.

"To this day," he said, "I believe I'm the only white fisherman in Taiwan."

Seewald said he has now visited more than 170 out of 230 fishing harbors in Taiwan.

Now serving as chairman of New Green Power (NGP), a Taipei-based renewables company, Seewald also hosts the TaiwanPlus television program "Happy Fisherman," where he sails with local fishermen.

The lecture at the public library was the first warm-up event for this year's TaiwanFest, which promotes Taiwan and Taiwanese culture in Canada.