Ma was born in
Kailu County,
Inner Mongolia, in 1955. His father was an editor of a TV station, and his mother was a teacher of a primary school of
Hui people. In 1970, his parents were sent to the
May Seventh Cadre Schools to do farm works in
Yongji County (now Yongji), Shanxi, where he was educated. In 1980, he was admitted to
Peking University with the first place of students of arts in
Shanxi province. After graduating in 1987, he joined the faculty of the
Renmin University of China, where he taught the history of literary criticism in
ancient China. Ma was transferred to the
Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits in 1992. In November 2013, he was promoted to director of the Information Bureau of the
Taiwan Affairs Office of the
State Council, concurrently holding the spokesperson position. ==References==