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Jiang Zemin 江泽民
General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China
In office 24 June 1989 – 15 November 2002 (&1000000000000001300000013 years, &10000000000000144000000144 days)
Deputy	Li Peng Zhu Rongji Li Ruihuan Hu Jintao
Preceded by	Zhao Ziyang
Succeeded by	Hu Jintao
President of the People's Republic of China
In office 27 March 1993 – 15 March 2003 (9 years 353 days)
Premier	Li Peng Zhu Rongji
Vice President	Rong Yiren Hu Jintao
Preceded by	Yang Shangkun
Succeeded by	Hu Jintao
Chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission
In office 9 November 1989 – 19 September 2004
Preceded by	Deng Xiaoping
Succeeded by	Hu Jintao
Chairman of the PRC Central Military Commission
In office 19 March 1990 – 8 March 2005
Preceded by	Deng Xiaoping
Succeeded by	Hu Jintao
Member of the 13,14,15 th CPC Politburo Standing Committee
In office 24 June 1989 – 15 November 2002
General Secretary	Himself
Member of the National People's Congress
In office 25 March 1988 – 5 March 2008
Constituency	Shanghai At-large
Personal details
Born	(1926-08-17) 17 August 1926 (age 85) Yangzhou, Jiangsu
Nationality	Chinese
Political party	Communist Party of China
Spouse(s)	Wang Yeping
Alma mater	Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Profession	Electrical engineer
Signature

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Jiang Zemin (born 17 August 1926) is a former Chinese politician, who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 2002, as President of the People's Republic of China from 1993 to 2003, and as Chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2005. His long career and political prominence have led to him being described as the "core of the third generation" of Communist Party leaders.

Jiang Zemin came to power following Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, replacing Zhao Ziyang as CPC General Secretary. With the waning influence of Deng Xiaoping and the other members of Eight Elders due to old age,and with the help of old and powerful party and state leaders, former President Li Xiannian and Chen Yun Jiang effectively became the "Paramount Leader" in the 1990s. Under his leadership, China experienced substantial developmental growth with reforms, saw the peaceful return of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom and Macau from Portugal, and improved its relations with the outside world while the Communist Party maintained its tight control over the government. Jiang has been criticized for being too concerned about his personal image at home, and too conciliatory towards Russia and the United States abroad.^[1]

Background and ascendancy[link]

Jiang was born in the city of Yangzhou, Jiangsu. His ancestral home was the Jiangwan Village (江湾村), Wuyuan County (婺源县) of the old Huizhou (徽州) in northern Jiangxi Province. This was also the hometown of a number of prominent figures in Chinese academic and intellectual establishments. Jiang grew up during the years of Japanese occupation. His uncle, Jiang Shangqing, had died fighting the Japanese in World War II and was considered to be a national hero. Jiang attended the Department of Electrical Engineering at the National Central University in Japanese-occupied Nanjing before being transferred to Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He graduated there in 1947 with a Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering.

Jiang married^[when?] Wang Yeping (Chinese: 王冶坪; pinyin: Wáng Yěpíng, born 1928), a native of Yangzhou, China. She graduated from Shanghai International Studies University.^[2] They have two sons, Jiang Mianheng and Jiang Miankang.^[2]

He claimed that he joined the Communist Party of China when he was in college^{[citation needed]}. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Jiang received his training at the Stalin Automobile Works in Moscow in the 1950s. He also worked for Changchun's First Automobile Works. He eventually got transferred to government services, where he began to rise in prominence and rank, eventually becoming a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, Minister of Electronic Industries in 1983.

In 1985 he became Mayor of Shanghai, and subsequently the Party Chief of Shanghai. Jiang received mixed reviews as mayor. Many of his critics dismissed him as a "flower vase", a Chinese term used to describe a decorative but useless person.^[3] Many credited Shanghai's growth during the period to Zhu Rongji^{[citation needed]}. Jiang was an ardent believer, during this period, in Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms. In an attempt of curbing student discontent in 1986, Jiang recited the Gettysburg Address in English in front of a group of student protesters.^[4][5]

Jiang was described as having a passable command of several foreign languages,^[6] including Romanian, Russian, and English. One of his favorite activities was to engage foreign visitors in small talks on art and literature in their native language, in addition to singing foreign songs in the original language.^[6] He became friends with Allen Broussard, the African American judge who visited Shanghai in 1987 and Brazilian actress Lucelia Santos^{[citation needed]}.

Jiang was elevated to national politics in 1987, automatically becoming a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee because it is customarily dictated that the Party Chief of Shanghai would also have a seat in the Politburo. In 1989, China was in crisis over the Tiananmen Square protest, and the Central Government was in conflict on how to handle the protesters. (The opening policy, brought out by Deng Xiaoping, has been proved as a crucial and brilliant turning point in China's modern history, causing the economy to grow at an astonishing rate during the past decades.) In June, Deng Xiaoping dismissed liberal Zhao Ziyang, who was considered too conciliatory to student protestors. Jiang, at the time, was the Shanghai Party Chief, the top figure in China's new economic center. In an incident with the World Economic Herald, Jiang closed down the newspaper, deeming it harmful. The handling of the crisis in Shanghai was noticed by Beijing, and then paramount Leader Deng Xiaoping. As the protests escalated and then Party-chief Zhao Ziyang was removed from office, Jiang was selected by the Party leaders as a compromise candidate over Tianjin's Li Ruihuan, Premier Li Peng, Li Xiannian, Chen Yun, and the retired elders to become the new General Secretary. At the time he was considered to be an unlikely candidate^{[citation needed]}. Within three years Deng had transferred most power in the state, party and military to Jiang.

Early leadership[link]

Jiang was elevated to the country's top job in 1989 with a fairly small power base inside the party, and thus, very little actual power^{[citation needed]}.His most reliable allies were the powerful party elders - Chen Yun and Li Xiannian. He was believed as simply a transitional figure until a more stable successor government to Deng could be put in place. Other prominent Party and military figures like Yang Shangkun and brother Yang Baibing were believed to be planning a coup. Jiang used Deng Xiaoping as a back-up to his leadership in the first few years. Jiang, who was believed^{[citation needed]} to have a neo-conservative slant, warned against "bourgeois liberalization". Deng's belief, however, stipulated that the only solution to keeping the legitimacy of Communist rule over China was to continue the drive for modernization and economic reform, and therefore placed himself at odds with Jiang.

At the first meeting of the new Standing Committee of the Politburo, after the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989, Jiang criticized the previous period as "hard on the economy, soft on politics" and advocated increasing political thought work.^[7] Anne-Marie Brady writes that "Jiang Zemin was a long time political cadre with a nose for ideological work and its importance. This meeting marked the beginning of a new era in propaganda and political thought work in China." Soon after, the Central Propaganda Department was given more resources and power, "including the power to go in to the propaganda-related work units and cleanse the ranks of those who had been supportive of the democracy movement."^[7]

Deng grew critical of Jiang's leadership in 1992. During Deng's southern tours, he subtly suggested that the pace of reform was not fast enough, and the "central leadership" (i.e. Jiang) had most responsibility. Jiang grew ever more cautious, and rallied behind Deng's reforms completely. In 1993, Jiang coined the new term "socialist market economy" to move China's centrally-planned socialist economy into essentially a government-regulated capitalist market economy. It was a huge step to take in the realization of Deng's "Socialism with Chinese characteristics". At the same time, Jiang elevated many of his supporters from Shanghai to high government positions, after regaining Deng's confidence. He abolished the outdated Central Advisory Committee, an advisory body composed of revolutionary party elders. He became Chairman of the Central Military Commission in 1989, followed by his election to the Presidency in March 1993.

Secretaryship and Presidency[link]

Deng Xiaoping died in early 1997, and China, emerging gradually out of the Deng-era reforms and the relative stability of the early 1990s, faced a myriad of economic and social problems. At Deng's funeral, Jiang delivered his eulogy. He had inherited a China rampant with government corruption, and regional economies growing too rapidly for the stability of the entire country. Deng's idea that "some areas can get rich before others" gave rise to an opening wealth gap between coastal regions and the hinterlands. The unprecedented economic growth had inevitably led to the closing of many state-owned enterprises (SOE's), and a staggering unemployment rate that hit 40% in some urban areas. Stock markets fluctuated greatly. The scale of rural migration into urban areas was unprecedented anywhere in the world^{[citation needed]}, and little was being done to address an ever-increasing urban-rural wealth gap. Official reports put the figure on the percentage of China's GDP being moved and abused by corrupt officials at 10%.^{[citation needed]} A chaotic environment of illegal bonds issued from civil and military officials resulted in much of the corrupted wealth to end up in foreign countries. Corruption levels had replicated, if not exceeded that of the Republican era in the 1940s. A surge in crime rates and the re-emergence of organized crime began to plague cities. A careless stance on the destruction of the environment furthered concerns voiced by intellectuals. Jiang's biggest aim in the economy was stability, and he believed that a stable government with highly centralised power would be a prerequisite, choosing to postpone political reform, which in many facets of governance exacerbated the on-going problems.^[3] Jiang continued pouring funds to develop the Special Economic Zones and coastal regions.

Jiang is believed to be the first Chinese leader to truly manipulate the medium of television to enhance his own image, gaining a reputation for charisma.^{[citation needed]} Beginning in 1996, Jiang began a series of reforms in the state-controlled media aimed at promoting the "core of leadership" under himself, and at the same time crushing some of his political opponents. The personality enhancements in the media were largely frowned upon during the Deng era, and had not been seen since Mao and Hua Guofeng's time in office in the late 1970s. The People's Daily and CCTV-1's 7 pm national news each had Jiang-related events as the front-page or top stories, a fact that remained until Hu Jintao's media administrative changes in 2006. He appeared casual in front of Western media, and gave an unprecedented interview with Mike Wallace of CBS in 2000 at Beidaihe. He would often use foreign languages in front of the camera, albeit not always comprehensible. In an encounter with a Hong Kong reporter in 2000 regarding the central government's apparent "imperial order" of supporting Tung Chee-hwa to seek a second term as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Jiang branded the Hong Kong journalists as "too simple, sometimes naive" in English.^[8] The event was shown on Hong Kong television that night, an event regarded to be in poor taste outside China.

Among the main features of Jiang’s domestic policy was his campaign against the Falun Gong spiritual practice, which once had tens of millions of followers in China. On 25 April 1999 upwards of 10,000 Falun Gong adherents protested outside the Zhongnanhai government compound to request official recognition.^[9][10] In response, Jiang declared Falun Gong to be an unprecedented threat, and declared it must be defeated.^[9][11] According to Human Rights Watch, Communist Party leaders and ruling elite were far from unified in their support for the crackdown.^[12] In June 1999, Jiang established an extralegal 6-10 Office to oversee the suppression of Falun Gong,^[13] which began in earnest on July 20 with the arrest and abduction of hundreds of Falun Gong adherents.^[12] The campaign that followed was characterized by Amnesty International as a "massive propaganda campaign" intended to discredit Falun Gong, as well as arbitrary imprisonment and coercive reeducation of adherents, sometimes resulting in death.^[14][15] Under Jiang's leadership, the crackdown on Falun Gong became part of the Chinese political ethos of "upholding stability" – much the same rhetoric employed by the party during Tiananmen in 1989.^[12] The scope and intensity of the campaign has been described as "unrivaled" in recent history,^[16] and as being reminiscent of the extremes of the Cultural Revolution.^[17][18] Falun Gong Practitioners outside China have filed dozens of largely symbolic lawsuits against Jiang Zemin and other Chinese officials alleging genocide and crimes against humanity.^[17][19] In many instances, courts have refused to adjudicate the cases on the grounds of sovereign immunity. In late 2009, separate courts in Spain and Argentina indicted Jiang and other officials on the charge of torture and genocide, and asked for their arrest, although the ruling is acknowledged to be largely symbolic and unlikely to be carried out.^[20][21]

Foreign policy[link]

Jiang Zemin with Bill Clinton in 1999.

Jiang went on a groundbreaking state visit to the United States in 1997, drawing various crowds in protest from the Tibet Independence Movement to the supporters of chinese democracy movement. He made a speech at Harvard University, part of it in passable English, but could not escape questions on democracy and freedom. In the official summit meeting with US President Bill Clinton, the tone was relaxed as Jiang and Clinton sought common ground while largely ignoring areas of disagreement. Clinton would visit China in June 1998, and vowed that China and the United States were partners in the world, and not adversaries. When American-led NATO bombed the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade in 1999, Jiang seemed to have put up a harsh stance for show at home, but in reality only performed symbolic gestures of protest, and no solid action. Much of Jiang's foreign policy was focused on international trade and economic integration. A personal friend of former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien,^[22] Jiang strengthened China's economic stature abroad, attempting to establish cordial relations with countries whose trade is largely confined to the American economic sphere.

Economic development[link]

Jiang did not specialize in economics, and in 1997 handed a most of the economic governance of the country to Zhu Rongji, who became Premier, and remained in office through the Asian financial crisis^{[citation needed]}. Under their joint leadership, Mainland China has sustained an average of 8% GDP growth annually, achieving the highest rate of per capita economic growth in major world economies, raising eyebrows around the world with its astonishing speed. This was mostly achieved by continuing the process of a transition to a market economy^{[citation needed]}. Strong party control over China was cemented by the PRC's successful bid to join the World Trade Organization and Beijing winning the bid to host the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Entrenching Three Represents[link]

Before he transferred power to a younger generation of leaders, Jiang had his theory of Three Represents written into the Party's constitution, alongside Marxism–Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, and Deng Xiaoping Theory at the 16th CPC Congress in 2002. Although contradictory to Marxism and Maoism in many facets^[which?], it was also written into China's Constitution. Critics^[who?] believe this is just another piece added to Jiang's cult of personality, others have seen practical applications of the theory as a guiding ideology in the future direction of the CPC. Largely speculated to step down from all positions by international media, rival Li Ruihuan's resignation in 2002 prompted analysts to rethink the man. The theory of Three Represents was believed by many political analysts to be Jiang's effort at extending his vision to Marxist–Leninist principles, and therefore elevating himself alongside previous Chinese Marxist philosophers Mao and Deng.

Gradual retirement[link]

Jiang Zemin with wife Wang Yeping and George W. Bush with wife Laura Bush in Crawford, Texas in 2002.

In 2002, Jiang stepped down from the powerful CPC Politburo Standing Committee and CPC General Secretary to make way for a "fourth generation" of leadership headed by Hu Jintao, marking the beginning of a transition of power that would last several years. Hu assumed Jiang's title as party chief, becoming the new general secretary of the Communist Party. Six out of the nine new members of Standing Committee at the time were considered part of Jiang's so-called "Shanghai Clique", the most prominent being Vice President Zeng Qinghong and First Vice Premier Huang Ju.

Although Jiang retained the chairmanship of the powerful Central Military Commission, most members of the commission are professional military men. Liberation Army Daily, a publication thought to represent the views of the CMC majority, printed an article on 11 March 2003 which quotes two army delegates as saying, "Having one center is called 'loyalty', while having two centers will result in 'problems.'"^[23] This was widely interpreted as a criticism of Jiang's attempt to exercise dual leadership with Hu on the model of Deng Xiaoping.

Hu succeeded Jiang as President of the People's Republic of China on 15 March 2003. To the surprise of many observers, evidence of Jiang's continuing influence on public policy abruptly disappeared from the official media. Jiang was conspicuously silent during the SARS crisis, especially when compared to the very public profile of Hu and Wen Jiabao. It has been argued that the institutional arrangements created by the 16th Congress have left Jiang in a position where he cannot exercise much influence.^{[citation needed]} Although many of the members of the Politburo Standing Committee are associated with him, the Standing Committee does not have command authority over the civilian bureaucracy.^{[citation needed]}

On 19 September 2004, after a four-day meeting of the 198-member Central Committee, Jiang resigned as chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission, his last party post. Six months later he resigned his last significant post, chairman of the State CMC. This followed weeks of speculation that Hu Jintao's supporters in the Communist Party leadership were pressing Jiang to step aside. Jiang's term was supposed to have lasted until 2007. Hu also succeeded Jiang as the CMC chairman, but, in an apparent political defeat for Jiang, Xu Caihou, and not Zeng Qinghong was appointed to succeed Hu as vice chairman. This power transition officially marks the end of Jiang's era in China, which roughly lasted from 1993^{[citation needed]} to 2004.

Although Jiang has been seldom seen in public since giving up his last official title in 2004, he was with Hu Jintao on stage at a ceremony celebrating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the People's Liberation Army,^[24] and toured the Military Museum of the Chinese Peoples Revolution with Li Peng, Zhu Rongji, and other former senior officials.^[25] On 8 August 2008, Jiang appeared at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics Games. He also stood beside Hu Jintao during 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China mass parade in October 2009.

In 2011, Jiang has been subject to internet rumors of his death,^[26] as he was absent from public events such as the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party. As a response, Chinese censors to block searches for the words "Jiang Zemin", or even simply "Jiang". On July 6 Hong Kong media carried headlines that Jiang was "critically ill", while TV station ATV reported that Jiang had died in Beijing.^[27] State news agency Xinhua, quoting "authoritative sources", declared that overseas media reports of Jiang's death were "pure rumor".^[28][29]

On 9 October 2011, Jiang made his first public appearance since his premature obituary in Beijing at a celebration to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Xinhai Revolution.^[30]

Legacy[link]

Historians and biographers have disputed what can be accounted into "Jiang Zemin's legacy". Jiang himself had wanted his Three Represents theory, called an "important thought" on the mainland, to become his ideological legacy. Although the theory has been codified into both the State and Party constitutions alongside Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory, its actual effect has yet to be assessed, and it seems to be losing ground to Hu Jintao's Scientific Development Concept and Harmonious Society ideologies within the party. Jiang has come under quiet criticism from within the Communist Party of China for focusing on economic growth at all costs while ignoring the resulting environmental damage of the growth, the widening gap between rich and poor in China and the social costs absorbed by those whom economic reform has left behind.^{[citation needed]} By contrast, the policies of his successors, Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao have widely been seen as efforts to address these imbalances and move away from a sole focus on economic growth toward a broader view of development which incorporates non economic factors such as health and the environment.^[31]

Domestically, Jiang's legacy and reputation is mixed. While some^{[citation needed]} people attributed the period of relative stability and growth in the 1990s to Jiang's term, others argue that Jiang did little to correct mistakes resulting from Deng Xiaoping's economic reforms, leaving the next administration facing innumerable problems, some of which it is too late to solve.^{[citation needed]} The fact he arose to power as the direct beneficiary of the turmoils of 4 June has not been forgotten by many in China. Indeed, he is in many circles regarded as a political opportunist; the very model of a new breed of party members directly associated with the widespread corruption and cronyism that flourished during his tenure. His interference with high profile corruption investigations since stepping down from power, such as those involving Shanghai tycoon Zhou Zhengyi, has only served to reinforce this perception.

Jiang's obsession with image has also spurred a trend of face projects around the country, with local governments lending enormous funds to large and mostly unnecessary construction projects^{[citation needed]}. While his showy nature has often been considered charming and even charismatic by the west,^[32] in the relatively more conservative Chinese society it is often perceived as frivolous, pompous and lacking in character and substance. Jiang's Theory of Three Represents justified the incorporation of the new capitalist business class into the party, and changed the founding ideology of the CPC from protection of the peasantry and workers to that of the "overwhelming majority of the people", a euphemism aimed at including the growing entrepreneurial class. Conservative critics within the party have quietly denounced this as betrayal of the communist ideology, while reformers have praised Jiang as a visionary.^{[citation needed]} Such a move, however, increasingly justified a newly found correlation between the business and ruling elites, thus significantly linking bureaucracy and financial gain, which critics argued fosters more corruption. Some have suggested this is the part of Jiang's legacy that will last, at least in name, as long as the communists remain in power.^{[citation needed]}

Many biographers of Jiang have noted his government resembled an oligarchy as opposed to an autocratic dictatorship.^[33] Many of his policies have been attributed to others in government^{[citation needed]}, notably Premier Zhu Rongji, whose tense relationship with Jiang caused widespread speculation, especially following Jiang's decision to suppress the Falun Gong movement.^{[citation needed]} Jiang is often credited with the improvement in foreign relations during his term,^[34] but at the same time many Chinese have criticized him for being too conciliatory towards the United States and Russia. The issue of Chinese reunification between the mainland and Taiwan gained ground during Jiang's term,^{[citation needed]} as Cross-Strait talks led to the eventual Three Links after Jiang stepped down as Party general secretary. The construction of the Qinghai-Tibet railway began under Jiang.

See also[link]

• Politics of the People's Republic of China
• History of the People's Republic of China (1989–2002)
• Song Zuying, Famous folk singer and former mistress
• The Man Who Changed China: The Life and Legacy of Jiang Zemin, Jiang's controversial biography by Robert Lawrence Kuhn

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Gilley, Bruce. "Tiger on the Brink: Jiang Zemin and China's New Elite." Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998. 395pp. This was the first biography of Jiang to appear in the West. A comprehensive and highly readable journalistic account of Jiang's early years, his ascendancy within the Party bureaucracy, and his ultimate rise to power as Deng Xiaoping's successor in the wake of Tiananmen.
• Kuhn, Robert Lawrence = The Man Who Changed China: The Life and Legacy of Jiang Zemin, Random House (English edition) 2005. Century Publishing Group, Shanghai (Chinese edition) 2005. The book is a general biography of Jiang with a more favorable stance towards him.
  • China Daily = English language review of biography by Dr. Kuhn.
• Lam, Willy Wo-Lap. "The Era of Jiang Zemin"; Prentice Hall, Singapore: 1999. General Jiang-era background information and analysis, not comprehensive biography.

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Jiang Zemin

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jiang Zemin

• Swedes to sue ex Chinese president The Local Europe AB
• China rejects Spain's 'genocide' claims Posted by Independent Minds
• China warns Spain over Tibet lawsuit The New York Times
• Biography at China Vitae, the web's largest online database of China VIPs
• Falun Gong accuse Chinese leaders of genocide Expatica Communications
• ...investigation to proceed against China's ex-president, Jiang Zemin, and Luo Gan... The American Society of International Law
• Landmark Genocide Lawsuit Against Jiang Zemin on Firm Ground Friends of Falun Gong USA January 2004

v t e Leaders of the People's Republic of China Mao Hua Deng Jiang Hu

v t e Leaders of the Communist Party of China Leaders Chen Duxiu Xiang Zhongfa Li Lisan Xiang Zhongfa Wang Ming Bo Gu Zhang Wentian Mao Zedong Hua Guofeng Deng Xiaoping Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao General Secretaries Chen Duxiu vacant (1922–25) Chen Duxiu Xiang Zhongfa Bo Gu Zhang Wentian vacant (1943–82) Hu Yaobang Zhao Ziyang Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao Chairmen Chen Duxiu vacant (1925–43) Mao Zedong Hua Guofeng Hu Yaobang abolished from 1982 CMC Chairmen Mao Zedong Hua Guofeng Deng Xiaoping Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao

v t e Presidents of the People's Republic of China Common Program (1949–1954) Chairman of the Central People's Government Mao 1954 Constitution (1954–1975) Chairman Mao Liu Song and Dong (acting) Dong (acting) 1975 Constitution (1975–1978) NPCSC Chairman Zhu Song (acting) Ye 1978 Constitution (1978–1982) NPCSC Chairman Ye Song (honorary president) 1982 Constitution (1982–present) President Li Yang Jiang Hu List of Presidents of the People's Republic of China

v t e Chairmen of the Central Military Commission Party CMC Chairmen Mao Zedong Hua Guofeng Deng Xiaoping Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao State CMC Chairmen Deng Xiaoping Jiang Zemin Hu Jintao

v t e Members of the 15th Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China General Secretary 1. Jiang Zemin Other members 2. Li Peng 3. Zhu Rongji 4. Li Ruihuan 5. Hu Jintao 6. Wei Jianxing 7. Li Lanqing

v t e Members of the 14th Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China General Secretary 1. Jiang Zemin Other members 2. Li Peng 3. Qiao Shi 4. Li Ruihuan 5. Zhu Rongji 6. Liu Huaqing 7. Hu Jintao

Zhou Yongkang 周永康
6th Secretary of CPC Central Political and Legislative Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 October 2007
Deputy	Meng Jianzhu
General Secretary	Hu Jintao
Preceded by	Luo Gan
Member of the 17th CPC Politburo Standing Committee
Incumbent
Assumed office 22 October 2007
General Secretary	Hu Jintao
Member of the National People's Congress
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 March 1998
Constituency	Sichuan At-large (98-08) Heilongjiang At-large (08-)
Personal details
Born	December 1942 Wuxi, Jiangsu province
Nationality	Chinese
Political party	Chinese Communist Party

Zhou Yongkang (born December 1942) is a senior leader in the Communist Party of China (CPC) who is currently serving as the 9th ranked member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), and the head of the Central Political and Legislative Committee, an organ directing central government legal policy and the legislative agenda. In this position Zhou also oversees China's security forces and law enforcement institutions.

Zhou was a State Councillor until March 2008 and is a member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. He was mayor of Panjin in Liaoning province from 1983 until 1985, and served as the Minister of Public Security of the People's Republic of China from 2002 to 2007.

Biography[link]

Born in December 1942, Zhou Yongkang is a native of Wuxi, Jiangsu province. In November 1964 Zhou joined the CPC and joined geological survey work in north-east China in 1966 after the Cultural Revolution broke out.^[1] He graduated from the Survey and Exploration Department of Beijing Petroleum Institute majoring in geophysical survey and exploration. As a university graduate he holds the title Senior Engineer with a rank equivalent to that of Professor.^[2]

During the 1960s and 70s he spent most of his career in the petroleum industry. By the mid-1980s he was vice minister of the Petroleum Industry, and from 1996 General Manager of the China National Petroleum Corporation, China’s largest energy company.^[1][3] In 1998 he was Minister of Land and Resources and in 1999, secretary of the Communist Party of China Sichuan Provincial Committee. During his tenure as Minister of Public Security, he was a reformer of China's policing system, aiming to create a more professional police force, even going as far as to fire several hundred police officers for drinking problems.^[4] His time in Sichuan and as Public Security Minister made him noticed by the party's central authority, and in 2007 he was transferred to fill the vacancy from Luo Gan, who retired in the party's political and legislative affairs committee, and was responsible for China’s courts, police, paramilitary and various domestic state security and spying agencies.^[1] As a result, even though he is ranked last in the PSC's hierarchy, it is not an indication of his actual power.^{[citation needed]}

Zhou (right) listens to American Admiral Thad Allen during a 2006 trip to the United States

Several leaked U.S. diplomatic cables from Wikileaks have alleged Zhou's involvement in Beijing's cyber attack against Google,^[5] though the claim's veracity has been questioned.^[5] Other cables said it was "well-known" that Zhou Yongkang controlled the state monopoly of the oil sector.^[6]

In May 2012 the Financial Times reported that Zhou had relinquished the operational control of the party's Political and Legal Affairs Commission to Minister of Public Security Meng Jianzhu due to his support for former Chinese politician Bo Xilai, and had lost his right to select his successor when he retires from the Politburo Standing Committee in fall 2012.^[7] The New York Times later reported that Zhou's status remained unchanged.^[8]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Zhou Yongkang biography and information
• Zhou Yongkang lifetime history

v t e Members of the 17th Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China General Secretary 1. Hu Jintao Other members 2. Wu Bangguo 3. Wen Jiabao 4. Jia Qinglin 5. Li Changchun 6. Xi Jinping 7. Li Keqiang 8. He Guoqiang 9. Zhou Yongkang

v t e Ministers of Public Security of the People's Republic of China Luo Ruiqing Xie Fuzhi Li Zhen Hua Guofeng Zhao Cangbi Liu Fuzhi Ruan Chongwu Wang Fang Tao Siju Jia Chunwang Zhou Yongkang Meng Jianzhu

v t e Bo Xilai Family and friends Bo Yibo · Gu Kailai · Neil Heywood · Bo Guagua Colleagues Huang Qifan · Wang Lijun · Wang Yang · Zhang Dejiang · Zhou Yongkang Related Wang Lijun incident · Cake theory · Chongqing gang trials · Politics of Chongqing · Politics of Liaoning

Zhu Rongji 朱镕基
Zhu Rongji in 2001
Premier of the People's Republic of China
In office 17 March 1998 – 16 March 2003
President	Jiang Zemin
Deputy	Li Lanqing
Preceded by	Li Peng
Succeeded by	Wen Jiabao
6th First-ranking Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China
In office 29 March 1993 – 17 March 1998
Premier	Li Peng
Preceded by	Yao Yilin
Succeeded by	Li Lanqing
Member of the 14,15th CPC Politburo Standing Committee
In office 19 October 1992 – 15 November 2002
General Secretary	Jiang Zemin
9th Governor of the People's Bank of China
In office July 1993 – June 1995
Premier	Li Peng
Preceded by	Li Guixian
Succeeded by	Dai Xianglong
Member of the National People's Congress
In office 25 March 1988 – 5 March 2003
Constituency	Shanghai At-large (88-93) Hunan At-large (93-03)
Personal details
Born	(1928-10-23) 23 October 1928 (age 83) Changsha, Hunan, China
Nationality	Chinese
Political party	Communist Party of China
Spouse(s)	Lao An
Alma mater	Tsinghua University
Profession	Electrical engineer
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Zhū Róngjī (pinyin: Zhū Róngjī; Wade-Giles: Chu Jung-chi; IPA: [tʂú ʐʊ̌ŋtɕí]; born 23 October 1928 in Changsha, Hunan) is a prominent Chinese politician who served as the Mayor and Party chief in Shanghai between 1987 and 1991, before serving as Vice-Premier and then the fifth Premier of the People's Republic of China from March 1998 to March 2003.

A tough administrator, his time in office saw the continued double-digit growth of the Chinese economy and China's increased assertiveness in international affairs. Known to be engaged in a testy relationship with General Secretary Jiang Zemin, under whom he served, Zhu provided a novel pragmatism and strong work ethic in the government and party leadership increasingly infested by corruption, and as a result gained great popularity with the Chinese public. His opponents, however, charge that Zhu's tough and pragmatic stance on policy was unrealistic and unnecessary, and many of his promises were left unfulfilled. Zhu retired in 2003, and has not been a public figure since. Premier Zhu was also widely known for his charisma and tasteful humour.

Purges, "rehabilitation", and Deng Xiaoping[link]

Zhu joined the Communist Party of China in October 1949. He graduated from the prestigious Tsinghua University in 1951 where he majored in electrical engineering and became the chairman of Tsinghua Student Union in 1951. Afterwards, he worked for the Northeast China Department of Industries as deputy head of its production planning office.

From 1952 to 1958, he worked in the State Planning Commission as group head and deputy division chief. Having criticized Mao Zedong's "irrational high growth" policies during the Great Leap Forward, Zhu was labeled a "Rightist" in 1958 and sent to work as a teacher at a cadre school. Pardoned (but not rehabilitated) in 1962, he worked as an engineer for the National Economy Bureau of the State Planning Commission until 1969.

During the Cultural Revolution, Zhu was purged again, and from 1970 to 1975 he was transferred to work at a "May Seventh Cadre School," a type of farm used for re-education during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976).

From 1975 to 1979, he served as the deputy chief engineer of a company run by the Pipeline Bureau of the Ministry of Petroleum Industry and as the director of Industrial Economics Institute under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

When Deng Xiaoping started economic reforms in 1978, his politic looked for like-minded economic advisors and sought out Zhu. The CPC formally rehabilitated Zhu on the strength of Zhu's forward-thinking and bold economic ideas. His membership in CPC was restored. Deng once said that Zhu "has his own views, dares to make decisions and knows economics."

Career in Shanghai[link]

Zhu (second left) leading the Chinese delegation at the European Management Forum in 1986

Zhu went to work for the State Economic Commission (SEC) as the division chief of the Bureau of Fuel and Power Industry and as the deputy director of the Comprehensive Bureau from 1979 to 1982. He was appointed as a member of the State Economic Commission in 1982 and as the vice-minister in charge of the commission in 1983, where he held the post until 1987, before being appointed as the mayor of Shanghai.

As the mayor of Shanghai from 1989 to 1991, Zhu won popular respect and acclaim for overseeing the development of Pudong, a Singapore-sized Special Economic Zone (SEZ) wedged between Shanghai proper and the East China Sea, as well the modernization of the city's telecommunications, urban construction, and transport sectors.

Vice Premiership[link]

In 1991, Zhu became the vice-premier of the State Council, transferring to Beijing from Shanghai. Also holding the post of director of the State Council Production Office, Zhu focused on industry, agriculture and finance, launching the drive to disentangle the "debt chains" of state enterprises. For the sake of the peasantry, he took the lead in eliminating the use of credit notes in state grain purchasing.

Between 1993 and 1995, Zhu served as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee while retaining his posts as the vice-premier of the State Council and as the governor of the People's Bank of China. From 1995 to 1998, he retained the positions of Standing Committee member and vice-premier.

Concurrently serving as governor of the Central Bank, Zhu tackled the problems of an excessive money supply, rising prices, and a chaotic financial market stemming, in large measure, from runaway investments in fixed assets. After four years of successful macro-economic controls with curbing inflation as the primary task, an overheated Chinese economy cooled down to a "soft landing". With these achievements, Zhu, acknowledged as an able economic administrator, became premier of the State Council.

Zhu used the term "patriotic organizations" to describe the triads on the record for their past history as secret societies in resisting foreign invaders and playing a key role in Chinese history.^[2]

Premiership[link]

Zhu has a reputation for being a strong, strict administrator, intolerant of flunkeyism, nepotism, and a dilatory style of work. For his hard work ethic and general truthful and transparent attitude, he is generally considered one of the most popular Communist officials in mainland China.^{[citation needed]}

With support from Jiang Zemin and Li Peng, then president and premier respectively, Zhu enacted tough macroeconomic control measures. Favoring healthy, sustainable development, Zhu expunged low-tech, duplicated projects and sectors that would result in "a bubble economy" and projects in transport, energy and agricultural sectors, averting violent market fluctuations. He focused on strengthening industry, agriculture and on continuing a moderately tight monetary policy. He also started a large privatization program which saw China's private sector grow massively.

President Jiang Zemin nominated Zhu for the position of the Premier of the State Council at the Ninth National People's Congress (NPC), who confirmed the nomination on 17 March 1998 at the NPC First Session. Zhu was re-elected as a member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee, China's de facto central decision-making group, at the 15th CPC Central Committee in September 1997.

The 1990s were a difficult time for economic management, as unemployment soared in the cities, and the bureaucracy became increasingly tainted with corruption scandals. Zhu kept things on track in the difficult years of the late 1990s, so that China averaged growth of 9.7% a year over the two decades to 2000. Against the backdrop of the Asian financial crisis (and catastrophic domestic floods) mainland China's GDP still grew by 7.9% in the first nine months of 2002, beating the government's 7% target despite a global economic slowdown. This was achieved, partly, through active state intervention to stimulate demand through wage increases in the public sector, among other measures. China was one of the few economies in Asia that survived the crisis.

While foreign direct investment (FDI) worldwide halved in 2000, the flow of capital into mainland China rose by 10%. As global firms scrambled to avoid missing the China boom, FDI in China rose by 22.6% in 2002. While global trade stagnated, growing by one percent in 2002, mainland China's trade soared by 18% in the first nine months of 2002, with exports outstripping imports.

Despite the glowing growth statistics, Zhu tackled deep-seated structural problems: uneven development; inefficient state firms and a banking system mired in bad loans. Observers think there are few substantial disagreements over economic policy in the CPC; tensions focus on the pace of change. Zhu's economic philosophies had often triumphed over that of his colleagues, but it nevertheless resulted in a testy relationship with then-General Secretary Jiang Zemin.

The PRC leadership struggled to modernize State-owned enterprises (SOEs) without inducing massive urban unemployment. As millions lost their jobs as state firms close, Zhu demanded financial safety nets for unemployed workers, an important aim in a country of 1.3 billion. China needs 100 million new urban jobs in the next five years to absorb laid off workers and rural migrants; so far they have been achieving this aim due to high per capita GDP growth. Under the auspices of Zhu and Wen Jiabao (his top deputy and successor), the state tried to alleviate unemployment while promoting efficiency, by pumping tax revenues into the economy and maintaining consumer demand. Zhu has won acclaim domestically and internationally for steering the People's Republic of China into the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001.

Critics have charges that there is an oversupply of manufactured goods, driving down prices and profits while increasing the level of bad debt in the banking system. But so far demand for Chinese goods, domestically and abroad, is high enough to put those concerns to rest in the time being. Consumer spending is growing, boosted, in large part, due to longer workers' holidays.

Zhu's right-hand man, Vice Premier Wen Jiabao, oversaw regulations for the stock market and campaigned to develop poorer inland provinces to stem migration and regional resentment. Zhu, and his successor Wen, set limits^{[citation needed]} for taxes imposed on farmers to protect them from high levies by corrupt officials. Well respected by ordinary Chinese citizens, Zhu also holds the respect of Western political and business leaders, who found him reassuring and credit him with clinching China's market-opening World Trade Organisation (WTO) accession,^[3] which has brought foreign capital pouring into the country.

Zhu remained as Premier until the National People's Congress met in March 2003, when it approved his struggle to clinch trusted deputy Wen Jiabao as his successor. Wen was the only Zhu ally to appear on the nine-person Politburo Standing Committee. Like his fourth-generation colleague Hu Jintao, Wen's personal opinions are difficult to discern since he sticks very closely to his script. Unlike the frank, strong-willed Zhu, Wen, who has earned a reputation for being an equally competent manager, is known for his suppleness and discretion.^{[citation needed]}

During the 2000 ROC presidential election in Taiwan, Zhu gave the warning "there will be no good ending for those involved in Taiwan independence". In his farewell speech to the National People's Congress, Zhu unintentionally referred to China and Taiwan as two "countries" before quickly correcting himself.^[4] His stance on Taiwan during his time in office was always with the Party line.^{[citation needed]}

Personal life[link]

Zhu Rongji and his wife Lao An (1956)

Zhu has a good command of English. He is rarely seen speaking from a script. In his free time, Zhu enjoys the Peking Opera. According to some reports, Zhu is a 18th generation descendent of Zhu Bian (朱楩), titled Prince of Min (岷王), the 18th son of Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming Dynasty.^{[5][6][7][8][9][10]} He has a cousin, Zhu Yunzhong, who was born in 1933 and is a retired doctor.^[5][11][12] His wife, Lao An, was once vice-chairman of the board of directors of China International Engineering and Consulting. She and Zhu were in the same schools twice, first the Hunan First Provincial Middle School (湖南第一中学) and then Tsinghua University. They have a son and a daughter. His son is Zhu Yunlai, born in 1957.^[13]

Zhu is known for his technical intellect. In 1997 at a state banquet in Australia, Zhu left for the bathroom, and was gone quite a while. Concerned security staff finally went off to find him. He was in the bathroom, studying the water-saving dual-flush system which he had just disassembled. As a hydrologist, Zhu grasped the impact such water savings, multiplied by China's huge population, could have on China's infrastructure.^[14][15]

Legacy[link]

Zhu Rongji was noticeably more popular than his predecessor, Li Peng, and some analysts point out that Zhu's tough administrative style in the Premier's office bore a certain resemblance to Premier Zhou Enlai.^{[citation needed]} Zhu, a competent manager and a skilled politician,^{[citation needed]} ran into various roadblocks during his tenure because of the attitude of General Secretary Jiang Zemin. Critics charge that Zhu made too many "big promises" that are unable to be achieved during his term in office.

See also[link]

• History of the People's Republic of China (1989–2002)
• Macroeconomic regulation and control
• Politics of the People's Republic of China
• Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China

References[link]