March 11^th, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) held its Secretary General Election at its headquarters in Montreal. Alumnae Fang Liu of Law School, also the present Director of ICAO’s Bureau of Administration and Services, won the election by a majority 19 out of 36 secret ballots. Commencing 1 August 2015, Dr. Fang Liu will serve as the new Secretary General for a three-year term. She is the first Chinese appointed to the prestigious global position heading the United Nations specialized agency for civil aviation, and the first female ICAO Secretary General ever. Running against Dr. Fang Liu were three other candidates nominated by Australia, India and the UAE.

Fang Liu graduated from Wuhan University in 1989 with a Master’s Degree in Environment Law; studying under the Professorship of Mr. Han Depei, the Maestro in Private International Law of PRC, Liu obtained her PhD in Private International Law in 1999. From 1987 to 2007, Dr. Liu held the posts of Legal Counsel, Deputy Director, Director and Deputy Director General in the Department of International Affairs and Cooperation of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). In these capacities she either led or was integrally involved in the areas of international affairs and cooperation at bilateral and multilateral levels including ICAO, aviation policy, international air transport regulation and development, and bilateral and multilateral air services negotiations for the Chinese government. In 2007, she became the Director of ICAO’s Bureau of Administration and Services. Dr. Liu showed great efficiency and leadership with her extraordinary services in human resource, IT, language and publications, conferences, security and logistics, ICAO Council, revenue, etc.