
| -Biographical Database- |
People's Republic of China- (1949- Present)
- Imperial China- (?- 1644)
- Qing Era- (1644- 1912)
- Republican Era- (1912- 1949)
- People's Republic of China- (1949- present)
- Republic of China (Taiwan)- (1949- present)
The People's Republic of China part of the Biographical Database provides short biographies of individuals involved in the progress of Chinese and relative East Asian history after the People's Republic of China was declared, October 1, 1949.
Chinese names will be alphabetically sorted according to Pinyin romanization of the Chinese name (they will appear without the pinyin accent marks). Older pronunciations, former romanizations, other translations and variations will be present next to the pinyin translation. There may be more than a few exceptions to this general rule, depending on the names most commonly associated with the person, independent of romanization issues, such as Chiang Kai-shek.
Where possible, names will include Chinese character references in either traditional (BIG5) or simplified (GB) characters or both.
Please follow this primer which defines the transliteration type and/or name type for entries:
- B5- Traditional characters (BIG 5)
- GB- Simplified characters (GB)
- Should both BIG5 and GB correspond, the character will be listed under B5.
- BN- Birth name
- CCN- Common name inside China
- CN- Common name
- TW- Taiwanese
- POJ- Orthography for the Taiwanese language
- PY- Pinyin romanization
- WG- Wade Giles romanization
- Y- Yale romanization
Western names will be alphabetically sorted according to western biographical standards, or by surname. If there is a Chinese equivalent, it will be present next to the western name.
Dates reflecting a time period before the year '0' in western terms, are categorized as BCE (Before the Common Era). This is equivalent to the widely used BC (Before Christ) and a.C.n. (Ante Christum Natum "before the birth of Christ"). Dates reflecting a time period after the year '0' are categorized as CE (in the Common Era). This is equivalent to the widely used AD (Anno Domini "In the Year of the Lord"). As the Chinese culture in the majority do not subscribe to the practice of Christianity as a religion, it seemed appropriate to signify these dates in a neutral manner.
Dates before October 1582 are given in the Julian calendar, not in the proleptic Gregorian calendar. Dates after October 1582 are given in the Gregorian calendar, not in the Julian calendar that remained in use in England until 1752.
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An index to all terms in this database is located after the database entries.
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| A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · X · Y · Z |
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Bo Gu
SEE Qin Bangxian
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Bo Yibo
B5: 薄一波; PY: Bó Yībō (1908- )- Chinese politician, one of the Eight Immortals of Communist
China.
He was alternate member and then member of the Politburo, deputy prime minister, chairman of State Economic Commission and vice-chairman of Central
Advisory Commission of the Communist Party.
Joining the Communist Party of China when he was seventeen, Bo is now the most senior member of the Party and the only surviving member of the Eight
Immortals.
During the Second World War, Bo set up the 'Shanxi Suicide Squad for the Liberation of China', which was widely acclaimed not only as one of the most
courageous sections of the Chinese Red Army against the Japanese invaders, but it also became the mainstream force in the struggle against the Fascist
regime. Bo has been responsible for incorporating the warlord Yan Xishan into the Red Army, who provided more than 200,000 troops.
During the Cultural Revolution, Bo was imprisoned as a political prisoner by Jiang Qing, Chairman Mao's wife, for his pro-democratic activities and
for advocating freedom of trade with western countries. He was held in one of the worst conditioned prisons for fifteen years, during which time his
wife was beaten to death. His sons and daughters were either imprisoned (e.g. Bo Xiyon, Bo Xilai and Bo Xicheng, at the ages of sixteen, seventeen
and seventeen respectively) or sent to some of the poorest places in China (e.g. Bo Xining, at the age of fourteen).
His son Bo Xilai is called one of "Crown Prince Party" and is currently serving as the Chinese Minister of Commerce.
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Chen Duxiu
B5: 陳獨秀; GB: 陈独秀; PY: Chén Dúxiù; WG: Ch`en Tu-hsiu (October 8, 1879- May 27, 1942)- Co- founder of the Communist Party of China, with Li Dazhao,
in 1921. He was its first Chairman, first General Secretary and an educator, philosopher, and politician. His ancestral home was in Anqing (安慶),
Anhui, where he established the vernacular Chinese newspaper New Youth.
Contents
Oct 1879 to Oct 1901: Early life and education.
Oct 1910 to Sep 1915: Planned the 1911 Revolution.
Sep 1915 to Apr 1920: Became an influential figure in the May Fourth Movement.
Apr 1920 to Jan 1924: Established the Communist Party of China.
Jan 1924 to Jul 1927: Worked for the revolution and reformation in China.
Jul 1927 to Oct 1932: Dismissed from leadership of party, Changed from supporting Liquidationism to Trotskyism.
October 15, 1932: Arrested by the Kuomintang; in 1933 sentenced to thirteen years in prison.
August 23, 1937: Released from prison
Aug 1937 to May 1942: Years of silence.
May 27, 1942: Dies of heart disease.
Chen Duxiu was born in the city of Anqing (安慶) in Anhui (安徽) province. His father died when Chen was very young, and Chen was primarily raised by
his grandfather and later by his older brother.
Chen had almost no formal education, but his grandfather tutored him in classical Chinese literature, especially the Four Books (四書) and the Five
Classics (五經). A thorough knowledge of these literary and philosophical works were the pre-requisites for civil service in Imperial China. Chen was
an exceptional student, but this lack of formal education resulted in a lifelong tendency to advocate unconventional beliefs and criticize traditional
ideas.
Chen took and passed the county-level imperial examination (鄉試) in 1896, but he failed the provincial-level examination (省試) the following year. He
moved to Shanghai in 1900 and Japan in 1901. It was in Japan where Chen became influenced by western socialism and the growing Chinese dissident movement.
The Founding of the Chinese Communist Party
At the turn of the century, the Qing Dynasty (清朝) had suffered a series of humiliating military defeats against the colonial foreign powers, namely
the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) and the war against the Alliance of Eight Nations in 1901. At the same time, widespread corruption within
the Qing bureacracy had left the empire in a state of total economic paralysis. During this time, Chen became an increasingly influential activist
in the revolutionary movement against both foreign imperialism and the Qing government itself.
Chen founded the Anhui Patriotic Association (安徽愛國會) in 1903 and the Yuewang Hui (岳王會) in 1905. Chen was an outspoken writer and political leader
by the time of the Wuchang Uprising (武昌起義) of 1911, which led to the abdication of Qing emperor and the collapse of the Qing Dynasty. Chen fled to
Japan again in 1913 following the short-lived "Second Revolution" of Yuan Shikai (袁世凱), but he returned to China in time to take part in the May Fourth
Movement of 1919.
In 1921, Chen Duxiu, Li Dazhao, and other prominent revolutionary leaders founded the Communist Party of China (中国共产党, 中國共産黨). Because of more or
less biased Chinese historiography and lack of knowledge elsewhere, it has been generally assumed that Chen, Li and the other Chinese radicals of
the time (including future chairman Mao Zedong) just formed the CPC out of diligent study of Marxist theories before and inspired by the Russian Revolution
of 1917. However, it has been found out later that the road to Marxism was a long one, a number of the radicals being more or less anarcho-socialist
or anarcho-communist even at the time the party was created, and several of the prominent members at that time didn't understand even the fundamental
premises of Marxist theory. Because of heavy persecution and failed attempts at a more anarchistic social revolution, the prominent Chinese revolutionaries
finally turned to communism, apparently more or less through the influence of a Comintern advisor by the name of Grigori Voitinsky, who made a tour
of China during 1920-21.
At the First Congress of the Communist Party in Shanghai, Chen was elected (in absentia) as the party's first general-secretary, and with the assistance
of Li, he developed what would become an important relationship with the international communist movement, the Comintern. However, co-operation with
the Comintern would be a problem for the fledgling CCP for the next ten years, as aggressive Comintern advisors would try to force policy according
to the wishes of Moscow.
At the direction of the Comintern, Chen and the Chinese Communists formed an alliance with Sun Yat-sen and the Nationalist Party (中國國民黨, the Guómíndǎng,
or the Kuomingtang) in 1922; almost every prominent member of the CCP was against this decision. China had disintegrated into several warring states
following the Wuchang Uprising, and the Nationalists were attempting to re-unify the nation under a Republican government. However, Chen became increasingly
disillusioned with the Nationalists, which he perceived as rivaling the Qing dynasty in corruption. He also resented the foreign influence of the
Comintern over the Chinese Communists. Chen was forced to resign as secretary-general in 1927 for his opposition to the Comintern.
Afterwards, Chen became associated with the International Left Opposition of Leon Trotsky. Like Chen, Trotsky opposed many of the policies of the
Comintern. Trotsky publicly criticized the Comintern's effort to collaborate with the Nationalists. Chen eventually became the voice of the Trotskyists
in China, which caused him to be forced out of the pro-Comintern CPC entirely in 1929.
In 1932, Chen was arrested by the Nationalist-controlled government during the anti-marxist purges of President Chiang Kai-shek (Jiǎng Jièshí, 蔣介石,
or 蔣中正). Chen was released in 1937, but his political organization had been shattered in the aftermath. The CPC had been almost completely destroyed
in the purges. Both the supporters of Chen and the pro-Comintern leaders who opposed him had been either killed or fallen out of favor with the Communist
membership. The Chinese Communist Party only managed to survive the purges by fleeing to the northern frontier in the Long March of 1934, under the
leadership of a new party chairman, Mao Zedong. Mao and this new generation of communists would lead the party in China for the next fifty years.
Chen was one of the few early leaders of the Communist party to survive the turmoil of the 1930's, but he was never able to regain any influence within
the party he had founded. For the last two decades of his life, he faded into obscurity. Chen Duxiu died in 1942 at the age of 62 in Sichuan province,
and is today buried at his birthplace of Anqing.
Chen felt his articles reflected the needs of society. He believed that the progress of society cannot be achieved without those who accurately report
social weaknesses and sicknesses.
Chen‘s articles were always expressive. He criticized the traditional Chinese officials as corrupt and guilty of other wrongdoing. He was always being
attacked and persecuted by the conservatives and had to flee to Japan for four times.
Chen’s articles strove to attract publicity, and often arouse discussion by using hyperbole. For instance, he emphasized his sadness about the backwardness
and corruption in China, so that people suffering would be wiling to send him their opinions. In the New Youth, he even wrote different articles by
using different nicknames to form a ‘discussion’, so that the public could be aroused.
Chen’s newspapers emphasized the responses from the audience. For instance, there were forums and citizens columns in New Youth. On average, there
were 6 letters from the public in each publications. Whether praise or strong opposition, Chen encouraged all to write. Chen thought that teamwork
was very important in journalism. So he asked help from many talented authors and journalists, including Hu Shih and Lu Xun.
On March 31, 1904, Chen founded Anhui Suhua Bao (安徽俗話報) which was the a newspaper that he established with Fang Zhiwu (房秩五) and Wu Shou (吴守) in Tokyo to promote revolutionary ideas using vernacular Chinese, a language which was simpler and easier to read for the general public. Chen was the chief secretary of the newspaper at that time. Initially, only a thousand copies were published. However, in less than half a year, it increased to threefold and the paper was ranked at the top among other vernacular Chinese newspaper publications. During 1904 and 1905, a total of twenty-three periodicals were published. Each had 40 pages for each publication, about 15000 words. However, the paper was barred from publishing in 1905 due to political reasons.
Chen's has three main objectives in publishing Anhui Suhua Bao (安徽俗話報):
- To let his villagers (Anhui) keep abreast of the politics of Qing Dynasty.
- To inject knowledge to the readers through vernacular Chinese.
- To promote the revolutionary ideas to the public.
Chen found out that Chinese often ranked families at a prior position than the country. Furthermore, most of them were in his view too superstitious. Thus, Chen tried to urge Chinese people to participate in politics through the publication of Anhui Suhua Bao (安徽俗話報). After the sixteenth publication, the newspaper added extra 16 topics, including military, Chinese philosophy, hygiene, astronomy, etc. Almost all of the added topics were written by Chen. His pen-name was Sanai (三愛). At least 50 articles were published under this name.
The Shanghai’s local government forbade the sales of Guomin Ribao(國民日報) on December 1st, 1903. After that, Chen had twice planned to found AiGuo
Xinbao (愛國新報). He failed because of great pressure from different groups. He continued to express his discontent towards the government. For instance,
when Anhui Suhua Bao (安徽俗話報) was published on March 31st 1904, Chen was responsible for all editing and distribution.
On November 27th 1918, Chen started another magazine, the Weekly Review (每週評論) with Li Dazhao (李大釗) so as to criticize politics in a more direct way
and to promote democracy, science and new literature (baihua). Later, he founded New Youth (新青年). This publication was known for his argumentative
essays. He also edited Tokyo Jiayin Magazine (甲寅雜誌) and Science Magazine (科學雜誌). Later, he became the Editor-in chief of Minli Bao (民立報)and Shenzhou
Daily (神州日報).
From 1918 to 1910, students at Beijing University, namely Deng Zhongxia (鄧中夏) and Xu Deheng (許德珩) founded the Guomin magazine (國民雜誌) and invited Li
Dazhao (李大釗) as consultant. From 1912 to 1913, Chen asked for assistance from Luo Jialun (羅家倫) and Fu Sinian (傅斯年) and they founded Xinchao She (新
潮社).
In early 1914, Chen went to Japan and was an editor and wrote critical articles in the Tokyo Jiayin Magazine (甲寅雜誌) for Zhang Shizhao (章士釗). Chen once wrote an article entitled "Self consciousness on patriotism" (愛國心與自覺) which conveyed a strong sense of patriotism and instigated people to fight for their freedom. It spread the idea that those who love their country would spare no pains to protect the country and strive for the rights which the people deserve. This group of people should work together towards the same goal harmoniously. The article was threatening to the central government as it tried to arouse the self-consciousness of the Chinese people. This preliminary magazine was released for 10 issues in total before it was stopped from publishing. The magazine was resumed in 1925 in Beijing with the new name "Tokyo Jiayin Weekly" (甲寅周刊).
In 1915, Chen started an influential monthly periodical in Shanghai, The Youth Magazine (青年雜誌), which was renamed New Youth (新青年) and subtitled La
Jeunesse in 1916 to 1919. Chen was the chief editor of this periodical. It was published by Qunyi shushe (群益書社) and stopped in 1926. The magazine
mainly advocated the use of plain language, socialism and Marxism and strongly against feudalism.
Chen in fact had became the Chinese lecturer of Chinese literature and also the president of the school of Arts in Peking University(北京大学) since 1917.
Having the approval from the principal of the Peking University, Chen collected writings of Li Dazhao(李大釗), Hu Shih(胡適), Lu Xun(鲁迅) and Qian Yuan
(錢沅) etc. In order to expand the editorial department, New Youth was moved to Beijing. And in February of the same year, Chen used New Youth in promoting
science, democracy and new literature, as well as against paleography and old literature. They advocated the use of scientific means and rational
proofs in judgment and the achievement of political, economic, social and ethical democracy as their goals.
New Youth was divided into different phases:
- 1915 to 1918: it opposed the Chinese conservatism (Confucianism) and promoted the development of democracy. So it became the centre of the New Cultural Movement.
- 1919 to 1921: (until the formation of the Communist Party), its nature turned from democratic to socialist, aiming at promoting Marxism.
- 1921 to 1926: it became the theoretic base for the Communist Party.
In 1918, New Youth published some new poems of Hu Shih (胡適)and Liu Bannong (劉半農), which were written in vernacular Chinese in order to conform with the above advocacy. Later on, all the articles in New Youth were written in vernacular Chinese and new punctuations marked his pioneer role in vernacular Chinese magazine publication.
In the second edition of New Youth, Chen published Cai Yuanpei's speech, that is the Speech of Freedom of Religion (蔡元培先生在信教自由會之演說). He at that time criticized Chen for his misinterpretation about his speech on religion. As he puts it, "The publication of my speech on New Youth committed a number of mistakes." Fortunately, Cai did not become angry with Chen and the publication was then amended before publishing.
This crisis was about the political stand of New Youth. Hu Shih insisted that New Youth should be politically neutral and the publication should
be more or less concerned with Chinese philosophy. However, Chen attacked his rationale by publishing "Politics Talk" (談政治) in the 8th edition. At
that time, Chen was invited by Chen Jiongming (陳炯明) to be the Education officer in Guangzhou in mid-December of 1920.
He decided to assign the publication to Mao Dun (茅盾), who belonged to the Shanghai Communist Party. Hu Shih was dissatisfied with this and their partnership
then crumbled. Later, Chen wrote Hu Shih about his dissatisfaction with Hu’s intimacy with the research faculty. He mentioned, "Please note your close
relationship with the research faculty".
Others feel that the faculty is advocated by Liang Qichao (梁啟超), a the supporter of the Tuan Ch'i-jui (段祺瑞) government and their anti-new wave ideology.
All of this made Chen greatly dissatisfied.
Chen suggested six guiding principles in an article called "Warning the teenagers" (敬告青年) in New Youth, which aimed at removing the old beliefs of Confucianism:
- To be independent instead of servile
- To be progressive instead of conservative
- To be aggressive instead of retrogressive
- To be cosmopolitan instead of isolationist
- To be utilitarian instead of impractical
- To be scientific instead of visionary
New Youth is one of the most influential magazines in the early modern Chinese history. Chen indoctrinated many new ideas such as individualism, democracy,
humanism and scientific methods which compensate the removal of Confucianism in Communism.
Seen in this light, New Youth then became in a position to provide the alternative intellectual influence for many young people. Under the banners
of democracy and science, the traditional ethics represented by Confucianism became the target of attack from New Youth. In the first issue, Chen
called the young generation to struggle against the Confucianism by "theories of literaturial revolution" (文學革命論), explained in details in the next
section.
To Chen, Confucianism should be rooted out because:
- It advocated superfluous ceremonies and preached the morality of meek compliance, making the Chinese people weak and passive, unfit to struggle and compete in the modern world
- It recognized the familial values but not the individual as the basic unit of society
- It upheld the inequality of the status of individuals
- It stressed filial piety which made man subservient and dependent
- It preached orthodoxy of thought in total disregard of freedom of thinking and expression.
In a word, Chen was calling for the destruction of tradition and his attack of traditionalism open a new vista for the educated youth. This magazine became the seed of the May Fourth Movement.
Chen's Contribution to Chinese Journalism
Chen has made many contributions in the field of Chinese journalism. He insisted on telling the truth to the Chinese people and strengthening the
Chinese media for later generations. By establishing the newspapers and magazines concerning political issues, Chen had provided a main channel for
the general public to express their ideas or discontent towards the existing government. Chen believed that the purpose of mass media is to reveal
the truth. At a young age, Chen had already established Guomin Ribao (國民日報), promoting the inefficiency of the Qing Dynasty. With a view to the things
mentioned above, his contribution was said to be influential to journalism as a whole.
To sum up, Chen was a famous revolutionary advocator and journalist in the modern Chinese history. His experiences in newspapers had born profound
impacts in the journalistic arena in China.
SEE Photograph (2)
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Chen Yun
B5: 陳雲; GB: 陈云; PY: Chén Yún (June 13, 1905- April 10, 1995)- was one of the most influential leaders of the People's Republic of China.
A native of Qingpu (now part of Shanghai), he worked underground as a union organizer in the late 1920s, participated in the Long March, and served
on the Central Committee from 1931 to 1987. He was also active in the field of economics, despite receiving no formal education after elementary school.
Chen Yun's position as one of the top Chinese leaders span almost to its entirety. He was one of the Big Five in Communist China along with Mao Zedong,
Liu Shaoqi, Zhou Enlai, and Zhu De. A Politburo Standing Committee member for decades, he was one of the Vice-Chairs to the Central Committee until
this position was abolished, and from 1987 to 1992 headed the party's Central Advisory Committee, until it was abolished. He is noted for the concept
of a "bird-cage economy".
He was considered to be one of the Eight Immortals of Communist China.
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Chiang Kai-shek
(ROC) B5: 蔣中正; PY: Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng; WG: Chiang Chung-cheng (PRC) GB: 蒋介石; PY: Jiǎng Jièshí; WG: Chiang Chieh- shih (October 31, 1887- April 5,
1975)- Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the death of Sun Yat-sen in 1925. He commanded
the Northern Expedition to unify China against the warlords and emerged victorious in 1928 as the overall leader of the Republic of China (ROC). Chiang
led China in the Second Sino-Japanese War, during which Chiang's stature within China weakened but his international prominence grew. During the Chinese
Civil War (1926–1949), Chiang attempted to eradicate the Chinese Communists but ultimately failed, forcing his government to retreat to Taiwan, where
he continued serving as the President of the Republic of China and Director-General of the KMT for the remainder of his life.
Contents
Chiang Kai-shek was born in the town of Xikou, approximately 33 km (20.5 miles) southwest of downtown Ningbo,
in Fenghua County, Ningbo Prefecture, Zhejiang Province. However, the ancestral home (祖籍) of Chiang Kai-shek, a concept important in Chinese society,
was the town of Heqiao (和橋鎮), in Yixing County, Wuxi Prefecture, Jiangsu Province (approximately 38 km. (24 miles) southwest of downtown Wuxi, and
10 km. (6 miles) from the shores of famous Lake Taihu).
His parents were Chiang Zhaocong (蔣肇聰) and Wang Caiyu (王采玉), part of a upper-middle class family of salt merchants. His father died when he was only
three and Chiang wrote of his mother as the "embodiment of Confucian virtues." In an arranged marriage, Chiang was married to fellow villager Mao
Fumei (毛福梅, 1882–1939). Chiang and Mao had a son, Ching-Kuo, and a daughter, Chien-hua (建華).
Chiang grew up in an era where military defeats had left China destabilized and in debt, and he decided to join the military. He began his military
education at the Paoting Military Academy in 1906. He left for the Military State Academy in Japan in 1907. There, he was influenced by his compatriots
to support the revolutionary movement to overthrow the Qing Dynasty and set up a Chinese republic. He befriended fellow Zhejiang native Chen Qimei
and in 1908, Chen brought Chiang to the Revolutionary Alliance. Chiang served in the Imperial Japanese Army from 1909 to 1911.
With the outbreak of the Wuchang Uprising in 1911, Chiang Kai-shek returned to China to fight in the revolution as an artillery officer. He served
in the revolutionary forces, leading a regiment in Shanghai under his friend and mentor Chen Qimei. The revolution was ultimately successful in overthrowing
the Qing Dynasty and Chiang became a founding member of the Kuomintang.
After takeover of the Republican government by Yuan Shikai and the failed Second Revolution, Chiang, like his Kuomintang comrades, divided his time
between exile in Japan and haven in Shanghai's foreign concession areas. In Shanghai, Chiang also cultivated ties with the criminal underworld dominated
by the notorious Green Gang and its leader Du Yuesheng. Chiang had numerous brushes with the law during this period and the International Concession
police records show an arrest warrant for him for armed robbery. On February 15, 1912, Chiang Kai-shek shot and killed Tao Chengzhang, the leader
of the Restoration Society, at point-blank range as Tao lay sick in a Shanghai French Concession hospital, thus ridding Chen Qimei of his chief rival.
In 1915, Chen Qimei was assassinated by agents of Yuan Shikai and Chiang succeeded him as the leader of the Chinese Revolutionary Party in Shanghai.
This was during a low point in Sun Yat-sen's career, with most of his old Revolutionary Alliance comrades refusing to join him in the exiled Chinese
Revolutionary Party, and Chen Qimei had been Sun's chief lieutenant in the party.
In 1917 Sun Yat-sen moved his base of operations to Guangzhou and Chiang joined him in 1918. Sun, at the time was largely sidelined and without arms
or money, was soon expelled from Guangzhou in 1918 and exiled again to Shanghai, but restored again with mercenary help in 1920. However, a rift had
developed between Sun, who sought to militarily unify China under the KMT, and Guangdong Governor Chen Jiongming, who wanted to implement a federalist
system with Guangdong as a model province. On June 16, 1923, Chen attempted to expel Sun from Guangzhou and had his residence shelled. Sun and his
wife Song Qingling narrowly escaped under heavy machine gun fire, only to be rescued by gunboats under the direction of Chiang Kai-shek. The incident
earned in Chiang Kai-shek the trust of Sun Yat-sen.
Sun regained control in Guangzhou in early 1924 with the help of mercenaries from Yunnan, and accepted aid from the Comintern. He then undertook a
reform of the Kuomintang and established a revolutionary government aimed at unifying China under the KMT. That same year, Sun sent Chiang Kai-shek
to spend three months in Moscow studying the Soviet political and military system. Chiang left his eldest son Ching-kuo in Russia, who would not return
until 1937. Chiang Kai-shek returned to Guangzhou and in 1924 was made Commandant of the Whampoa Military Academy. The early years at Whampoa allowed
Chiang to cultivate a cadre of young officers loyal to him and by 1925 Chiang's proto-army was scoring victories against local rivals in Guangdong
province. Here he also first met and worked with a young Zhou Enlai, who was selected to be Whampoa's Political Commissar. However, Chiang was deeply
critical of the Kuomintang-Communist Party United Front, suspicious that the Communists would take over the KMT from within.
With Sun Yat-sen's death in 1925 a power vacuum developed in the KMT. A power struggle ensued between Chiang, who leaned towards the right wing of
the KMT, and Sun Yat-sen's close comrade-in-arms Wang Jingwei, who leaned towards the left wing of the party. Though Chiang ranked relatively low
in the civilian hierarchy, and Wang had succeeded Sun to power as Chairman of the National Government, Chiang's deft political maneuvering eventually
allowed him to emerge victorious. Chiang, who became Commander-in-Chief of the National Revolutionary Forces in 1925, launched in July 1926 the Northern
Expedition, a military campaign to defeat the warlords controlling northern China and unify the country under the KMT.
The National Revolutionary Army branched into three divisions—to the west, Wang Jingwei led a column to take Wuhan, to the east, Pai Ch'ung-hsi led
another column to take Shanghai, while Chiang led in the middle to take Nanjing- before they were to press ahead to take Beijing. However, in January
1927, allied with the Chinese Communists and Soviet Agent Mikhail Borodin, Wang Jingwei and his KMT leftist allies (including Hu Hanmin and Song Qingling),
having taken the city of Wuhan amid much popular mobilization and fanfare, declared the National Government to have moved to Wuhan. After taking Nanjing
in March (and with Shanghai under the control of his close ally General Pai), Chiang momentarily halted his campaign and decided to break with the
leftists. On April 12, Chiang began a swift and brutal attack on thousands of suspected Communists. He then established his own National Government
in Nanjing, supported by his conservative allies. The communists were purged from the KMT and the Soviet advisers were expelled. This earned Chiang
the support (and financial backing) of the Shanghai business community, and maintained him the loyalty of his Whampoa officers (many of whom hailed
from Hunan elites were discontented by the land redistribution Wang Jingwei was enacting in the area), but led to the beginning of the Chinese Civil
War. Wang Jingwei's National Government, though popular with the masses, was weak militarily and was soon overtaken by a local warlord, forcing Wang
and his leftist government into joining him in Nanjing. Finally, the warlord capital of Beijing was taken in June 1928 and in December, the Manchurian
warlord Chang Hsueh-liang pledged allegiance to Chiang's government.
Chiang made gestures to cement himself as the successor of Sun Yat-sen. In a pairing of much political significance, Chiang married on December 1,
1927 Soong May-ling, the younger sister of Soong Ching-ling (Sun Yat-sen's widow, whom he had proposed to beforehand but was swiftly rejected) in
Japan and thus positioned himself as Sun Yat-sen's brother-in-law. (To please Soong's parents, Chiang had to first divorce his first wife and concubines
and promise to eventually convert to Christianity. He was baptized in 1929.) Upon reaching Beijing, Chiang paid homage to Sun Yat-sen and had his
body moved to the capital Nanjing to be enshrined in an grand mausoleum.
Chiang Kai-shek gained nominal control of China, but his party was "too weak to lead and too strong to overthrow". In 1928, Chiang was named Generalissimo
of all Chinese forces and Chairman of the National Government, a post he held until 1932 and later from 1943 until 1948. According to KMT political
orthodoxy, this period thus began the period of "political tutelage" under the dictatorship of the Kuomintang.
The decade of 1928 to 1937 was one of consolidation and accomplishment for Chiang's government. Some of the harsh aspects of foreign concessions and
privileges in China were moderated through diplomacy. The government acted energetically to modernize the legal and penal systems, stabilize prices,
amortize debts, reform the banking and currency systems, build railroads and highways, improve public health facilities, legislate against traffic
in narcotics, and augment industrial and agricultural production. Great strides also were made in education and, in an effort to help unify Chinese
society—the New Life Movement was launched to stress Confucian moral values and personal discipline. Mandarin was promoted as a standard tongue. The
widespread establishment of communications facilities further encouraged a sense of unity and pride among the people.
These successes, however, were met with constant upheavals with need of further political and military consolidation. Though much of the urban areas
were now under the control of his party, the countryside still lay under the influence of severely weakened yet undefeated warlords and communists.
Chiang fought with most of his warlord allies, with one northern rebellion—against the warlords Yen Hsi-shan and Feng Yuxiang—in 1930 almost bankrupting
the government and costing almost 250,000 casualties. When Hu Han-min established a rival government in Guangzhou in 1931, Chiang's government was
nearly toppled. A complete eradication of the Communist Party of China eluded Chiang. The Communists regrouped in Jiangxi and established the Chinese
Soviet Republic. Chiang's anti-communist stance attracted the aid of German military advisers, and in Chiang's fifth campaign to defeat the Communists
in 1934, he surrounded the Red Army only to see the Communists escape through the epic Long March to Yan'an.
With Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931, Chiang adopted a slogan "first internal pacification, then external resistance" which meant that the
government would first defeat the Communists before challenging Japan directly. In December 1936, Chiang flew to Xi'an to coordinate the final assault
on Red Army forces holed up in Yan'an. However, Chiang's allied commander Chang Hsueh-liang, whose forces were to be used in his attack and whose
homeland of Manchuria had been invaded by the Japanese, had other plans. On December 12, Chang Hsueh-liang kidnapped Chiang Kai-shek for two weeks
in what is known as the Xi'an Incident and forced Chiang into making an "Second United Front" with the Communists against Japan. Though he lost his
chance to finish off the communists, Chiang refused to make a formal public announcement of this "United Front" as the Communists had hoped and his
troops continued fighting the Communists throughout the war.
All-out war with Japan broke out in July 1937. In August of the same year, Chiang sent 500,000 of his best trained and equipped soldiers to defend
Shanghai. With about 250,000 Chinese casualties, Chiang lost his political base of Whampoa-trained officers. Although Chiang lost militarily, the
battle dispelled Japanese claims that it could conquer China in three months and demonstrated to the Western powers (which occupied parts of the city
and invested heavily in it) that the Chinese would not surrender under intense Japanese fire. This was skillful diplomatic maneuvering on the part
of Chiang, who knew the city would eventually fall, but wanted to make a strong gesture in order to secure Western military aid for China. By December,
the capital city of Nanjing had fallen to the Japanese and Chiang moved the government inland to Chongqing. Devoid of economic and industrial resources,
Chiang could not counter-attack and held off the rest of the war preserving whatever territory he still controlled, though his strategy succeeded
in stretching Japanese supply lines and bogging down Japanese soldiers in the vast Chinese interior who would otherwise have been sent to conquer
southeast Asia and the Pacific islands.
With the Attack on Pearl Harbor and the opening of the Pacific War, China became one of the Allied Powers. During and after World War II, Chiang and
his American-educated wife Soong May-ling, commonly referred to as "Madame Chiang Kai-shek", held the unwavering support of the United States China
Lobby which saw in them the hope of a Christian and democratic China. Chiang Kai-shek's policies were far from Christian or democratic, but this remained
unknown to the U.S. public due to strong state-imposed censorship in China and self-imposed censorship in the U.S. during the war years and after.
This was especially fomented by the Chiangs' close friendship with TIME magazine publisher Henry Luce.
Chiang's strategy during the War opposed the strategies of both Mao Zedong and the United States. The U.S. regarded Chiang as an important ally able
to help shorten the war by engaging the Japanese occupiers in China. Chiang, in contrast, used powerful associates such as H. H. Kung in Hong Kong
to build the ROC army for certain conflict with the communist forces after the end of WWII. This fact was not understood well in the United States.
The U.S. liaison officer, General Joseph Stilwell, correctly deduced that Chiang's strategy was to accumulate munitions for future civil war rather
than fight the Japanese, but Stilwell was unable to convince Franklin D. Roosevelt of this and precious Lend-Lease armaments continued to be allocated
to the Kuomintang. Chiang was recognized as one of the "Big Four" Allied leaders along with Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin and traveled to attend
the Cairo Conference in November 1943. His wife acted as his translator and adviser.
Following the World War, the United States encouraged peace talks between Chiang and Communist leader Mao Zedong in Chongqing, but each side, both
distrustful of each other and the United States' professed neutrality, soon resorted to all-out war. The U.S. suspended aid to Chiang Kai-shek for
much of the period of 1946 to 1948, in the midst of fighting against the People's Liberation Army led by Mao Zedong. Though Chiang achieved great
status internationally, his government was deteriorating with corruption and inflation. The war had severely weakened the Nationalists both in terms
of resources and popularity while the Communists were strengthened by aid from Stalin, and guerrilla organizations extending throughout rural areas.
The Nationalists initially had superiority in arms and men, but their lack of popularity and morale, and apparent disorganization soon allowed the
Communists to gain the upper hand.
Meanwhile a new Constitution promulgated in 1947, and Chiang was elected by the National Assembly to be President. This marked the beginning of the
democratic constitutional government period in KMT political orthodoxy, but the Communists refused to recognize the new Constitution and its government
as legitimate.
Chiang resigned as President on January 21, 1949, as KMT forces suffered massive losses against the communists. Vice President Li Tsung-jen took over
as Acting President, but his relationship with Chiang soon deteriorated, as Chiang still acted as if he were in power, and Li was forced into exile
in the United States under a medical excuse (under Chiang's direction, Li was later formally impeached by the Control Yuan). In the early morning
of December 10, 1949, Communist troops laid siege to Chengdu, the last KMT occupied city in mainland China, where Chiang Kai-shek and his son Chiang
Ching-kuo directed the defense at the Chengdu Central Military Academy. The aircraft May-ling evacuated them to Taiwan on the same day, forever removing
them from the Chinese mainland.
Chiang moved his government to Taipei, Taiwan, where he formally resumed his duties as president on March 1, 1950. Chiang was reelected by the National
Assembly to be the President of the ROC on May 20, 1954 and later on in 1960, 1966, and 1972. In this position he continued to claim sovereignty over
all of China. In the context of the Cold War, most of the Western world recognized this position and the ROC represented China in the United Nations
and other international organizations until the 1970s.
Despite the democratic constitution, the government under Chiang was a repressive and authoritarian single-party state consisting almost completely
of non-Taiwanese mainlanders; the "Temporary Provisions Effective During the Period of Communist Rebellion" greatly enhanced executive power and the
goal of "retaking the mainland" allowed the KMT to maintain its monopoly on power and to outlaw opposition parties. The government's official line
for these provisions stemmed from the claim that emergency provisions were necessary, since the Communists and KMT were still technically under a
state of war, without any cease-fire signed, after Chiang retreated to Taiwan. His government sought to impose Chinese nationalism and repressed the
local culture, such as by forbidding the use of Taiwanese in mass media broadcasts or in schools. The government permitted free debate within the
confines of the legislature, but jailed dissidents who were either labeled as supporters of Chinese communism or Taiwan independence. His son Chiang
Ching-kuo and Chiang Ching-kuo's successor Lee Teng-hui would in the 1980s and 1990s increase native Taiwanese representation in the government and
loosen the many authoritarian controls of the Chiang Kai-shek era.
Since new elections could not be held in their Communist-occupied constituencies, the members of the KMT-dominated National Assembly, Legislative
Yuan, and Control Yuan held their posts indefinitely. It was under the Temporary Provisions that Chiang was able to bypass term limits to remain as
president. He was reelected (unopposed) by the National Assembly as president four times in 1954, 1960, 1966, and 1972.
Defeated by the Communists, Chiang purged members of the KMT previously accused of corruption, and major figures in the previous mainland government
such as H.H. Kung and T.V. Soong exiled themselves to the United States. Though the government was politically authoritarian and controlled key industries,
it encouraged economic development, especially in the export sector. A sweeping Land Reform Act, as well as American foreign aid during the 1950's
laid the foundation for Taiwan's economic success, becoming one of the East Asian Tigers. During this time Chiang received an honorary degree from
Bob Jones University.
In 1975, 26 years after Chiang fled to Taiwan, he died in Taipei at the age of 87. He had suffered a major heart attack and pneumonia in the months
before and died from renal failure aggravated with advanced cardiac malfunction at 11 p.m. on April 5.
A month of mourning was declared during which the Taiwanese people were asked to put on black armbands. Televisions ran in black-and-white while all
banquets or celebrations were forbidden. On the mainland, however, Chiang's death was met with little apparent mourning and news papers gave the brief
headline "Chiang Kai-shek has died." Chiang's corpse was put in a copper coffin and temporarily interred at his favorite residence in Cihhu, Dasi,
Taoyuan County. When his son Chiang Ching-kuo died in 1988, he was also entombed in a separate mausoleum in nearby Touliao. The hope was to have both
buried at their birthplace in Fenghua once the mainland was recovered. In 2004, Chiang Fang-liang, the widow of Chiang Ching-kuo, asked that both
father and son be buried at Wuchih Mountain Military Cemetery in Sijhih, Taipei County. The state funeral ceremony is planned for late 2005. Chiang
Fang-liang and Soong May-ling had agreed in 1997 that the former leaders be first buried but still be moved to mainland China in the event of reunification.
Chiang was succeeded as President by Vice President Yen Chia-kan and as KMT party leader by his son Chiang Ching-kuo, who retired Chiang Kai-shek's
title of Director-General and instead assumed the position of Chairman. Yen Chia-kan's presidency was mainly symbolic, with real power held by Premier
Chiang Ching-kuo, who became President after Yen's term ended three years later.
Though one of the major figures in Chinese history, Chiang Kai-shek failed to cultivate in the Chinese people the affection of Sun Yat-sen or the
regard of Mao Zedong. As Mao's number-one nemesis, he was vilified in mainland China as "China's number one fascist": a leader who did not serve China's
best national interest in not putting an all-out effort against Japan and in trying to crack down on the Communists. Although numbers are uncertain,
many estimates place the number of deaths during Chiang Kai-shek's rule on the mainland at around ten million (the lowest estimates provide a figure
of about four million, while higher figures suggest as many as 18 million). Many deaths were the result of war and famine, but according to the controversial
historian R.J. Rummel approximately four million were killed directly. According to Rummel, even the lower figures would suggest that Chiang Kai-shek
has been responsible for more deaths than all but a handful of 20th-century dictators.
Chiang Kai-shek's current popularity in Taiwan is sharply divided among political lines, enjoying greater support among KMT voters and the mainlander
population. However, he is largely unpopular among DPP supporters and voters. Since the democratization of the 1990s, his picture began to be removed
from public buildings and the currency, while many of his statues have been taken down; in sharp contrast to his son Ching-kuo and to Sun Yat-sen,
his memory is rarely invoked by current political parties, including the Kuomintang.
Like many other Chinese historical figures, Chiang Kai-shek used several names throughout his life, and he is known under several of these names.
The name inscribed in the genealogical records of his family, is Jiang Zhoutai (蔣周泰). This "register name" (譜名) is the name under which his extended
relatives of the family knew him, this is a name that was used in formal occasions, such as when he got married. Traditionally, this name was not
used in intercourse with people outside of the family, and inside mainland China or Taiwan few people know that his "real" name (the concept of real
or original name is not as clear-cut in China as it is in the Western world) was Jiang Zhoutai (although other historical figures such as Mao Zedong
are known by their "register name").
This name, however, was not the name that he received when he was born. Traditionally, Chinese families would wait a certain number of years before
officially naming their offspring. In the meantime, they used so-called "milk names" (乳名) which were given to the infant shortly after his birth,
and which were known only by the close family. Thus, the actual name that Chiang Kai-shek received at birth was Jiang Ruiyuan (蔣瑞元), but again this
is a fact rarely known in mainland China or Taiwan, and only his parents would have used the given name Ruiyuan when calling him.
In 1903, 16-year-old Chiang Kai-shek went to Ningbo to be a student, and he chose a so-called "school name" (學名). The "school name" was actually the
formal name of a person, the name used by older people to call the person, so it was the name that the person would use the most in the first decades
of his life (as the person grew older, younger generations would have to use one of the courtesy names instead). Colloquially, the "school name" is
called "big name" (大名), whereas the "milk name" is known as the "small name" (小名). The "school name" that Chiang Kai-shek chose for himself was Zhiqing
(志清 - meaning "purity of intentions"). For the next fifteen years or so, Chiang Kai-shek was known as Jiang Zhiqing. This is the name under which
Sun Yat-sen knew him when Chiang joined the republicans in Guangzhou in the 1910s.
In 1912, when Chiang Kai-shek was in Japan, he started to use the name Jiang Jieshi (蔣介石) as a pen name for the articles that he published in a Chinese
magazine he founded (Voice of the Army - 軍聲). This name Jieshi soon became his courtesy name (字). Many interpretations of this name circulate. Some
think the name was chosen from the classic Chinese book the Book of Changes, other note that jie (介), the first character of his courtesy name, is
also the first character of the courtesy name of his brother and other male relatives on the same generation line, while the second character of his
courtesy name shi (石 - meaning "stone") reminds of the second character of his "register name" tai (泰 - the famous Mount Tai of China). Courtesy names
in China often tried to bear a connection with the personal name of the person. As the courtesy name is the name used by people of the same generation
to call the person, Chiang Kai-shek soon became known under this new name. (Jieshi is the pinyin romanization of the name, which is based on Mandarin,
but the common romanized rendering of this name is Kai-shek which is in Cantonese romanization. As the republicans were based in Guangzhou (a Cantonese
speaking area), Chiang Kai-shek became known by Westerners under the Cantonese romanization of his courtesy name, but the family name known in English
seems to be the Mandarin pronunciation of his Chinese family name, transliterated in Wade-Giles; the Cantonese pronunciation of his family name is
"Cheung"). In mainland China, the name Jiang Jieshi is the name under which he is commonly known today.
Sometime in 1917 or 1918, as Chiang was coming to the forefront among the republicans and became close to Sun Yat-sen, he changed his name from Jiang
Zhiqing to Jiang Zhongzheng (蔣中正). By adopting the name Zhongzheng ("central uprightness"), he was choosing a name very similar to the name of Sun
Yat-sen, who was (and still is) known among Chinese as Zhongshan (中山 - meaning "central mountain"), establishing a close link between the two. The
meaning of uprightness, rectitude, or orthodoxy, implied by his name, also positioned him as the legitimate heir of Sun Yat-sen and his ideas. Not
surprisingly, the Chinese Communists always rejected the use of this name, and the name is not very well known in mainland China. However, this name
was easily accepted by members of the Nationalist Party, and this is the name under which Chiang Kai-shek is still officially known in Taiwan. Often,
the name is shortened to Zhongzheng only (Chung-cheng in Wade-Giles) in the style of typical courtesy names (out of respect). Visitors who arrive
at the Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taipei are greeted by signs in Chinese welcoming them to the "Zhongzheng International Airport." Similarly,
the largest monument in Taipei, the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall is officially in Chinese called the "Zhongzheng Memorial Hall."
His name also used to be officially written in Taiwan as "The Late President (space) Lord Chiang" (先總統 蔣公), where the one-character-wide space showed
respect; this practice lost its popularity after Taiwan's democratization in the 1990s. However, he is still known as Lord Chiang (without the title
or space), along with the similarly positive name Jiang Zhongzheng, in Taiwan.
Chiang was also nicknamed "the Gimo" (short for "Generalissimo") by some English-speaking foreigners, especially by Americans during the Second World
War.
To further expand the already confusing issue of Chiang Kai-shek's name, below are variations:
Known in mainland China as Jiǎng Jièshí (Chiang Chieh- shih) GB: 蒋介石
Known in Taiwan as Jiǎng Zhōngzhèng (Chiang Chung-cheng) BIG5: 蔣中正
Register name (譜名): Zhoutai (周泰)
Milk name (乳名): Ruiyuan (瑞元)
School name (學名): Zhiqing (志清), later Zhongzheng (中正)
Courtesy name (字): Jieshi (介石)
Kai-shek in Cantonese (his native language)
SEE Photograph (3)
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Dalai Lama
Fourteenth- Spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism and formerly the ruler of Tibet. The Dalai Lama is believed to be a reincarnation of the
Buddha. When he dies, his soul is thought to enter the body of a newborn boy, who, after being identified by traditional tests, becomes the new Dalai
Lama.
The first to bear the title of Dalai Lama was Sonam Gyatso, grand lama of the Drepung monastery and leader of the Gelugpa (Yellow Hat) sect, who received
it in 1578 from the Mongol chief Altan Khan; it was then applied retroactively to the previous leaders of the sect. In 1642 another Mongol chief, Gushri
Khan, installed the fifth Dalai Lama as Tibet's spiritual and temporal ruler. His successors governed Tibet-first as tributaries of the Mongols, but
from 1720 to 1911 as vassals of the emperor of China.
When the Chinese Communists occupied Tibet in 1950, they came into increasing conflict with Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama. He left the country
after an unsuccessful rebellion in 1959 and thereafter lived in India. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 for leading the nonviolent opposition
to continued Chinese rule in Tibet. In 1995 the Dalai Lama came into conflict with Chinese authorities over the identification of a new Panchen Lama
(the second most senior Tibetan religious authority). In 1996 he published Violence and Compassion, in which he and French screenwriter Jean-Claude
Carrière consider topics of political and spiritual interest.
SEE Photographs
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Deng Xiaoping
B5: 鄧小平; GB: 邓小平; PY: Dèng Xiǎopíng; WG: Teng Hsiao-p'ing (August 22, 1904- February 19, 1997)- Revolutionary elder in the Communist Party of China
(CPC) who served as the de facto ruler of the People's Republic of China from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, forming the core of the "second generation"
CPC leadership. Under his tutelage, China developed one of the fastest growing economies in the world while the Communist Party retained tight control
over the country.
Contents
Deng was born Deng Xixian (鄧希賢 / 邓希贤) in Paifang Village in Xiexing township, Guang'an County, Sichuan Province.
He was educated in France, where many notable Asian revolutionaries, such as Ho Chi Minh and Zhou Enlai, discovered Marxism-Leninism.
Deng married 3 times. His first wife, Zhang Xiyuan, one of his schoolmates from Moscow, died when she was 24, a few days after giving birth to Deng's
first child, a baby girl, who also died. His second wife, Jin Weiying, left him after he came under political attack in 1933.
His third wife, Zhuo Lin, was the daughter of an industrialist in Yunnan Province. She became a member of the Communist Party in 1938, and a year
later married Deng in front of Mao's cave dwelling in Yan'an. They had 5 children: 3 daughters (Deng Lin, Deng Nan, Deng Rong) and 2 sons (Deng Pufang,
Deng Zhifang).
In the summer of 1920, Deng Xiaoping graduated from the Chongqing Preparatory School. He and 80 schoolmates, participating in a work-study program
for Chinese students, boarded a ship for France (traveling steerage) and in October arrived in Marseilles. Deng, the youngest of all the Chinese students,
had just turned 16. He spent most of his time in France working, first at the Le Creusot Iron and Steel plant in central France, then later as a fitter
in the Renault factory in the Paris suburb of Billancourt, as a fireman on a locomotive and as a kitchen helper in restaurants. He barely earned enough
to survive. He also briefly attended middle schools in Bayeux and Chatillon.
In France, under the influence of his seniors (Zhao Shiyan, Zhou Enlai and others), Deng began to study Marxism and do political propaganda work.
In 1922 he joined the Communist Party of Chinese Youth in Europe. In the second half of 1924 he joined the Chinese Communist Party and became one
of the leading members of the General Branch of the Youth League in Europe. During 1926 Deng studied at Moscow in the then-USSR. He returned to China
in early 1927.
In 1929 Deng led the Bose Uprising in Guangxi province against the KMT government. The uprising soon failed and Deng went to the Central Soviet Area
in Jiangxi province.
He was a veteran of the Long March, during which Deng served as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party. While acting as
political commissar for Liu Bocheng, he organized several important military campaigns during the war with Japan and during the Civil War against
the Kuomintang. In late November 1949, Deng led the final assault on KMT forces under the direct command of Chiang Kai-shek in his native Sichuan.
The city of Chongqing fell to the PLA on December 1 and Deng was immediately appointed mayor and political commissar. (Chiang Kai-shek, who had moved
his headquarters to Chongqing in mid-November fled to the provincial capital of Chengdu. This last mainland Chinese city to be held by the KMT fell
December 10 and Chiang fled to Taiwan on the same day.)
As an old fellow combatant and supporter of Mao Zedong, Deng was named by Mao to several important posts in the new government, including General
Secretary of the Communist Party, soon after the formation of the People's Republic of China.
After officially supporting Mao Zedong in his Anti-Rightist Campaign of 1957, Deng became General Secretary of the Communist Party of China and ran
the country's daily affairs with then President Liu Shaoqi. Amid growing disenchantment with Mao's Great Leap Forward, Deng and Liu gained influence
within the CPC. They embarked on economic reforms that bolstered their prestige among the party apparatus and the national populace. Deng and Liu
followed more progressive policies, as opposed to Mao's radicalist ideas.
Mao grew apprehensive that the prestige Deng and Liu gained from these efforts could lead to himself being reduced to a mere figurehead. For this
amongst other reasons, Mao launched the Cultural Revolution in 1966, during which Deng fell out of favor and was forced to retire from all his offices.
He was sent to the Xinjian County Tractor Factory in rural Jiangxi province to work as a regular worker. While there Deng spent his spare time writing.
He was purged nationally, but to a lesser scale than Liu Shaoqi.
When Premier Zhou Enlai fell ill from cancer, Deng became Zhou's choice for a successor, and Zhou was able to convince Mao to bring Deng Xiaoping
back into politics in 1974 as First Deputy Premier, in practice running daily affairs. However, the Cultural Revolution was not yet over, and a radicalist
political group known as the Gang of Four competed for power within the Communist Party. The Gang saw Deng as their
greatest challenge to success. After Zhou's death in January 1976, Deng lost firm support in the party, and after delivering Zhou's official eulogy
at the state funeral, was purged once again. Deng was forced to give up all posts by the Gang of Four.
A strong-willed and highly intelligent peasant revolutionary, the diminutive and aging Deng gradually emerged as the de-facto leader of the world's
most populous nation in the few years following Mao's death in 1976. Deng was also one of only a handful of peasant revolutionaries to lead China,
a group that includes Mao Zedong and the founders of the Han and Ming dynasties.
By carefully mobilizing his supporters within the Chinese Communist Party, Deng was able to outmaneuver Mao's anointed successor Hua Guofeng, who
had previously pardoned him, and then oust Hua from his top leadership positions by 1980-1981. In contrast to previous leadership changes, Deng allowed
Hua, who is still alive, to retain membership in the Central Committee until November 2002, to quietly retire, and helped to set a precedent that
losing a high-level leadership struggle would not result in physical harm.
Deng then repudiated the Cultural Revolution and launched the "Beijing Spring," which allowed open criticism of the excesses and suffering that had
occurred during the period. Meanwhile, he was the impetus for the abolishment of the class background system. Under this system, the CPC put up employment
barriers to Chinese deemed to be associated with the former landlord class.
Deng gradually outmaneuvered his political opponents. By encouraging public criticism of the Cultural Revolution, he weakened the position of those
who owed their political positions to that event, while strengthening the position of those like himself who had been purged during that time. Deng
also received a great deal of popular support.
As Deng gradually consolidated control over the CPC, Hua was replaced by Zhao Ziyang as premier in 1980, and by Hu Yaobang as party chief in 1981.
Deng remained the most influential CPC cadre, although after 1987 his only official posts were as chairman of the state and Communist Party Central
Military Commissions.
Originally, the president was conceived of as a figurehead head of state, with actual state power resting in the hands of the premier and the party
chief, both offices being conceived of as held by separate people in order to prevent a cult of personality from forming (as it did in the case of
Mao); the party would develop policy, whereas the state would execute it. Ironically, Deng held none of these top posts.
Under Deng's direction, relations with the West improved markedly. Deng traveled abroad and had a series of amicable meetings with western leaders,
traveling to the United States in 1979 to meet President Carter at the White House shortly after the U.S. broke diplomatic relations with the Republic
of China and established them with the PRC. Sino-Japanese relations also improved significantly. Deng used Japan as an example of a rapidly progressing
economic power that sets a good example for China's future economic directions.
Another achievement was the agreement signed by Britain and China on December 19, 1984 (Sino-British Joint Declaration) under which Hong Kong was
to be handed over to the PRC in 1997. With the end of the 99-year lease on the New Territories expiring, Deng agreed that the PRC would not interfere
with Hong Kong's capitalist system for 50 years. A similar agreement was signed with Portugal for the return of colony Macau. Dubbed "one country-two
systems," this approach has been touted by the PRC as potential framework within which Taiwan could be reunited with the Mainland in more recent years.
Deng, however, did little to improve relations with the Soviet Union, continuing to adhere to the Maoist line of the Sino-Soviet Split era that the
Soviet Union was a superpower equally as "hegemonic" as the United States, but even more threatening to China because of its geographical proximity.
"Socialism With Chinese Characteristics"
The goals of Deng's reforms were summed up by the Four Modernizations, those of agriculture, industry, science and technology and the military. The
strategy for achieving these aims of becoming a modern, industrial nation was the socialist market economy.
Deng argued that China was in the primary stage of socialism and that the duty of the party was to perfect "socialism with Chinese characteristics."
This interpretation of Chinese Marxism reduced the role of ideology in economic decision-making and deciding policies of proven effectiveness. Downgrading
communitarian values but not necessarily Marxism-Leninism, Deng emphasized that socialism does not mean shared poverty.
Unlike Hua Guofeng, Deng believed that no policy should be rejected out of hand simply for not having been associated with Mao, and unlike more conservative
leaders such as Chen Yun, Deng did not object to policies on the grounds that they were similar to ones which were found in capitalist nations.
Although Deng provided the theoretical background and the political support to allow economic reform to occur, few of the economic reforms that Deng
introduced were originated by Deng himself. Typically a reform would be introduced by local leaders, often in violation of central government directives.
If successful and promising, these reforms would be adopted by larger and larger areas and ultimately introduced nationally. Many other reforms were
influenced by the experiences of the East Asian Tigers.
This is in sharp contrast to the pattern in the perestroika undertaken by Mikhail Gorbachev in which most of the major reforms were originated by
Gorbachev himself. The bottom-up approach of the Deng reforms, in contrast to the top-down approach of perestroika, was likely a key factor in the
success of the former.
Deng's reforms actually included the introduction of planned, centralized management of the macro-economy by technically proficient bureaucrats, abandoning
Mao's mass campaign style of economic construction. However, unlike the Soviet model, management was indirect through market mechanisms.
Deng sustained Mao's legacy to the extent that he stressed the primacy of agricultural output and encouraged a significant decentralization of decision
making in the rural economy teams and individual peasant households. At the local level, material incentives, rather than political appeals, were
to be used to motivate the labor force, including allowing peasants to earn extra income by selling the produce of their private plots at free market.
In the main move toward market allocation, local municipalities and provinces were allowed to invest in industries that they considered most profitable,
which encouraged investment in light manufacturing. Thus, Deng's reforms shifted China's development strategy to an emphasis on light industry and
export-led growth.
Light industrial output was vital for a developing country coming from a low capital base. With the short gestation period, low capital requirements,
and high foreign-exchange export earnings, revenues generated by light manufacturing were able to be reinvested in more technologically-advanced production
and further capital expenditures and investments.
However, in sharp contrast to the similar but much less successful reforms in Yugoslavia and Hungary, these investments were not government mandated.
The capital invested in heavy industry largely came from the banking system, and most of that capital came from consumer deposits. One of the first
items of the Deng reforms was to prevent reallocation of profits except through taxation or through the banking system; hence, the reallocation in
state-owned industries was somewhat indirect, thus making them more or less independent from government interference. In short, Deng's reforms sparked
an industrial revolution in China.
These reforms were a reversal of the Maoist policy of economic self-reliance. China decided to accelerate the modernization process by stepping up
the volume of foreign trade, especially the purchase of machinery from Japan and the West. By participating in such export-led growth, China was able
to step up the Four Modernizations by attaining certain foreign funds, market, advanced technologies and management experiences, thus accelerating
its economic development.
Deng attracted foreign companies to a series of Special Economic Zones, where foreign investment and market liberalization were encouraged.
The reforms centered on improving labor productivity as well. New material incentives and bonus systems were introduced. Rural markets selling peasants'
homegrown products and the surplus products of communes were revived. Not only did rural markets increase agricultural output, they stimulated industrial
development as well. With peasants able to sell surplus agricultural yields on the open market, domestic consumption stimulated industrialization
as well and also created political support for more difficult economic reforms.
There are some parallels between Deng's market socialism especially in the early stages, and Lenin's New Economic Policy as well as those of Bukharin's
economic policies, in that both foresaw a role for private entrepreneurs and markets based on trade and pricing rather than central planning.
An interesting anecdote on this note is the first meeting between Deng and Armand Hammer. Deng pressed the industrialist and former investor in Lenin's
Soviet Union for as much information on the NEP as possible.
Crackdown of the Tiananmen Square Protests
The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 started from the middle of April 1989, triggered by the death of Hu Yaobang, the stepped down party general
secretary. Hu was widely seen as a liberal-minded person and was forced to resign from his position by Deng Xiaoping, an unfair treatment in many
people's view, especially among intellectuals.
Although the government declared martial law on May 20, the demonstrations continued. After deliberating among Communist party leaders, the use of
military force to resolve the crisis was ordered, and Zhao Ziyang was ousted from political leadership. Soldiers and tanks from the 27th and 38th
Armies of the People's Liberation Army were sent to take control of the city. These forces were confronted by Chinese workers and students in the
streets of Beijing and the ensuing violence resulted in both civilian and army deaths. The Chinese government acknowledged that a few hundred people
died.
Estimates of civilian deaths which resulted vary: 400-800 (New York Times), 1,000 (NSA), and 2,600 (Chinese Red Cross). Student protesters maintained
that over 7,000 were killed. Following the violence, the government conducted widespread arrests to suppress the remaining supporters of the movement,
limited access for the foreign press and controlled coverage of the events in the mainland Chinese press. The violent suppression of the Tiananmen
Square protest caused widespread international condemnation of the PRC government.
Officially, Deng decided to retire from top positions when he stepped down as Chairman of the Central Military Commission in 1989, and retired from
the political scene in 1992. China, however, was still in the era of Deng Xiaoping. He continued to be widely regarded as the "paramount leader" of
the country, believed to have backroom control. Hu Jintao, Deng's hand-picked man, is now the leader of the fourth generation of the PRC leadership.
Deng was recognized officially as "The architect of China's economic reforms and China's socialist modernization". To the Communist Party, he was
believed to have set a good example for communist cadres who refused to retire at old age. He broke earlier conventions of holding offices for life.
He was often referred to as simply Comrade Xiaoping, with no title attached.
In the spring of 1992, Deng went on a southern tour of China, visiting Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai and Shanghai, making various speeches. He stressed
the importance of economic construction in China, and criticized those who were against the reforms and opening up. He stated that "leftist" elements
of Chinese society were much more dangerous than "rightist" ones. He maintained that the economic reforms was a policy unchangeable in China, and
essential to China's further development. His southern tour was followed closely by Chinese media, and was taken very seriously by local officials.
Many people recognized the southern tour as a new achievement, making up for the mistake of the Tiananmen crackdown.
Deng Xiaoping died on February 19, 1997, at age 92, but his influence continued. At 1.5 meters (4 feet 11 inches), Chinese often called him "The
Short Giant" (矮巨人) as Deng was short yet powerful. Even though Jiang Zemin was in firm control, government policies still followed Deng's ideas, thoughts,
methods, and direction. The Central Government called Deng the "Great Marxist, Great Proletarian Revolutionary, politician, militarist, diplomat;
one of the main leaders of the Communist Party of China, the People's Liberation Army of China, and the People's Republic of China; The great architect
of China's socialist opening-up and modernized construction; the founder of Deng Xiaoping theory".
There was a significant amount of international reaction to Deng's death. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Deng was to be remembered "in the international
community at large as a primary architect of China's modernization and dramatic economic development". French President Jacques Chirac said "In the
course of this century, few men have, as much as Deng Xiaoping, led a vast human community through such profound and determining changes"; British
Prime Minister John Major commented about Deng's key role in the return of Hong Kong to Chinese control. The Taiwan presidential office also sent
its condolences, saying it longed for peace, cooperation, and prosperity. The Dalai Lama voiced regret.
In the year that followed, songs like "Story of the Spring" by Dong Wenhua, which were created in Deng's honor shortly after Deng's Southern Tour
in 1992, once again were widely played. The CCTV-1 network ran a lengthy documentary series on Deng's life.
SEE Photographs
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Deng Yingchao
B5: 鄧穎超; GB: 邓颖超; PY: Dèng Yĭngchāo (February 4, 1904 - July 11, 1992)- Chairwoman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference from
1983 to 1988 and a member of the Communist Party of China.
With ancestry in Guangshan County (光山縣), Henan, she was born Deng Wenshu (邓文淑) in Nanning (南寧), Guangxi. Growing up in the poverty-stricken family,
her father died when she was at a young age and her single mother taught and practiced medicine. Deng participated as a team leader in the May Fourth
Movement, where she met Zhou Enlai. They married on August 8, 1925 in Tianjin.
Deng and Zhou had no children of their own. However, they adopted several orphans of "revolutionary martyrs", including Li Peng, later a Premier of
the People's Republic of China. She was instrumental in the abolition of foot binding imposed on women.
She died in Beijing of illness at the age of 88.
There is a memorial hall dedicated to her and her husband in Tianjin (天津周恩来邓颖超纪念馆).
Sometimes considered one of the
Eight Immortals of Communist China, Deng Yingchao is not related
to Deng Xiaoping (who is from Sichuan).
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Eight Immortals Of Communist China, The - Group of elderly members of the
Communist Party of China who held substantial power during the 1980s and 1990s. In Chinese, however, they are called instead the Eight Great Eminent
Officials (八大元老 in pinyin: bā dà yuán lǎo), abbreviated as the Eight Elders (八老 bā lǎo). By 2000 most of the Immortals had died.
The name originated in the 1990s and is an allusion to the Taoist deities by the same name.
The identities of seven of the Immortals are clear:
- Deng Xiaoping, "Paramount Leader", Central Military Commission Chairman 1980- 1989, Central Advisory Commission chairman 1982- 1987
- Chen Yun, Central Advisory Committee Chairman 1987- 1992
- Peng Zhen, National People's Congress Chairman 1983- 1988
- Yang Shangkun, President of the PRC 1988- 1993.
- Bo Yibo, Central Advisory Committee Vice Chairman
- Li Xiannian, President of the PRC 1983- 1988, then Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference chairman
- Wang Zhen, Central Advisory Committee Vice Chairman
There is less certainty about the identity of the eighth Immortal:
- Song Renqiong, CAC Vice Chairman
- Deng Yingchao, CPPCC Chairwoman 1983- 1988, widow of Zhou Enlai
- less commonly: Wan Li, National People's Congress Chairman 1988- 1993
- less commonly: Xi Zhongxun, State Councillor
As of 2005, Wan Li and Bo Yibo are the only immortals still alive.
Some descendants of the Immortals constitute a group now known as the "Crown Prince Party".
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Gang of Four, The
B5: 四人幫, GB: 四人帮; PY: sì rén bāng- Group of Communist Party leaders in the People's Republic of China who were arrested and removed from their positions
in 1976, following the death of Mao Zedong, and were blamed for the events of the Cultural Revolution. The group included Mao's widow Jiang Qing and
three of her close associates, Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan, and Wang Hongwen. Two other men who were already dead in 1976, Kang Sheng and Xie Fuzhi,
were named as having been part of the "gang."
The removal of this group from power marked the end of the Cultural Revolution, which had been launched by Mao in 1966 as part of his power struggle
with leaders such as Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping and Peng Zhen. Mao placed Jiang, who before 1966 had not taken a public political role, in charge of
the country’s cultural apparatus. Zhang, Yao and Wang were party leaders in Shanghai who had played leading roles in securing that city for Mao during
the Cultural Revolution. The military leader, Lin Biao, was also part of this group until his death in a plane crash in 1971.
Around Lin's death, the Cultural Revolution began to lose impetus. The new commanders of the People's Liberation Army demanded that order be restored
in light of the dangerous situation along the border with the Soviet Union. The Premier, Zhou Enlai, who had accepted the Cultural Revolution but
never fully supported it, regained his authority, and used it to bring Deng Xiaoping back into the Party leadership at the 10th Party Congress in
1973. Liu Shaoqi had meanwhile died in prison in 1969.
It is now officially claimed by Chinese propaganda agencies that Mao in his last year turned against Jiang and her associates, and that after his
death on 9 September 1976 they attempted to seize power (the same allegation made against Lin Biao in 1971). Even 26 years later, it is impossible
to know the full truth of these events. It does appear that their influence was in decline before Mao's death: when Zhou Enlai died in January 1976,
he was succeeded not by one of the radicals but by the unknown Hua Guofeng.
In any event, upon Mao's death Hua was named Communist Party leader as well as Premier. The "Gang" had arranged for Deng Xiaoping, Zhou Enlai's protege,
to be purged in April 1976, but by early 1978, he was to become the real power of the Party. The radicals hoped that the key Army leaders Wang Dongxing
and Chen Xilian would support them, but Hua seems to have won the Army over to his side. On 6 October 1976, Hua staged what amounted to a coup within
the regime, arresting the four leading radicals and a number of their lesser associates. A massive media campaign was then launched against them,
dubbing them the Gang of Four and blaming them for all the excesses of the Cultural Revolution.
In 1981, the four deposed leaders were subjected to a show trial and convicted of anti-party activities. During the trial, Jiang Qing in particular
was extremely defiant, protesting loudly and bursting into tears at some points. Zhang Chunqiao refused to admit any wrong as well. Yao Wenyan and
Wang Hongwen expressed repentance and confessed their crimes. Jiang Qing and Zhang Chunqiao received death sentences that were later commuted to life
imprisonment, while Yao Wenyuan and Wang Hongwen were given twenty years imprisonment. They were all released later. Jiang Qing died soon after her
release, though some allege she committed suicide.
SEE Photograph (4)
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Hu Jintao
B5: 胡錦濤; GB: 胡锦涛; PY: Hú Jǐntāo; WG: Hu Chin-t'ao (December 21, 1942- )- Fourth and current President of the People's Republic of China and General
Secretary of the Communist Party of China.
Contents
Hu Jintao was born in Jiangyan, Jiangsu province. His ancestors lived in Jixi, the southeastern part of Anhui province. Since his grandfather
this branch of his family immigrated to Jiangyan and lived there ever since. Hu was a talented student in high school, excelling in such activities
as singing and dancing. He was also active in the Communist Youth Group. Hu joined the Communist Party prior to the Cultural Revolution in 1964 while
still a student at Beijing's Tsinghua University. He graduated with a degree in hydraulics engineering in 1964. After graduation Hu became an assistant
of the university and worked from 1965-1968. During the Cultural Revolution, Hu's father was tortured and died in Jiangyan. Deng Pufang, the eldest
son of Deng Xiaoping and also a student of Tsinghua University, was also persecuted during the Cultural Revolution by insurrectionists, with the intent
of inflicting collateral damage. Deng was kept in custody in a room full of radioactive materials. Deng knew that these might kill him, and decided
to jump out of a window. As a result, Deng was paralyzed and lay on the ground helpless, but nobody dared to give him a hand. Hu passed by and saw
the scene; he already knew about the situation and decided to escort Deng to the hospital, which saved Deng's life (although he was permanently paralyzed).
This incident greatly impressed Deng Xiaoping, who later lent a hand in Hu's promotion.
In 1965 Hu was transferred to Gansu and worked for a hydro power station under Mao Zedong's policy of Youth Going To The Mountains and Rural Areas.
From 1969-1974 Hu worked for Sinohydro Engineering Bureau No 4, as an engineer. In 1974 Hu was transferred to the Construction Department of Gansu
as a secretary. The next year he was promoted to vice senior chief. During this period, Hu met his first mentor, Song Ping, the first secretary of
CCP Gansu Division. Song appreciated Hu's talent and with Song's assistance, Hu was promoted to vice director of Construction Department in 1980.Another
protege of Song, Wen Jiabao became prominent at that time. In 1981 Hu was trained in the Central Party School in Beijing, and Deng's daughter Deng
Nan and Hu Yaobang's son Hu Deping were in the same class. Hu made a good impression on junior Deng, which was reported to Deng himself. Junior Hu
even invited Hu Jintao to his home and met with Hu Yaobang, who was standing member of politburo at that time, and Hu's being modest and able gave
Senior Hu deep impact. In 1982, Hu was promoted to secretary of CY Gansu Division.
With his mentor Song transferred to Beijing as Minister of Organization of CCP who was in charge of senior cadres' recommendation, candidacy and promotion,
together with Hu Yaobang and Deng's support, a bright future was lying ahead of Hu. In 1982, Hu was transferred to Beijing and appointed as secretariat
of Central CY. Two years later Hu was promoted to First Secretary of Central CY. During his term in CY, Hu escorted Hu Yaobang, who was General Secretary
of CCP then, to travel around the country. Hu Yaobang himself was a veteran coming from CY, from Hu he could see the youth of himself. The profound
feeling between Hu Yaobang and Hu led to Hu's insistence of rehabilitation of Hu Yaobang in Later years.
Hu Jintao accompanied Hu Yaobang in his year of CY
In 1985, Hu was transferred to Guizhou as secretary of CCP Guizhou Division,which began his era as a viceroy governing a province. In contrast to
the members of the "Shanghai clique", Hu spent most of his career in China's poorer hinterland rather than in the economically prosperous coastal
regions. Partly because of this, he was little known by Western analysts before his ascent to power. In 1987 Hu handled the students protest carefully,
which in Beijing resulted in Hu Yaobang's stepdown.
As Party Secretary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region from 1988 to 1992, Hu was responsible for a political crackdown in early 1989 that lead to the
deaths of several Tibetan activists. He also worked towards some liberalization of cultural activities. When Jiang Zemin was picked up by Deng to
succeed Zhao Ziyang in 1989, he was regarded as a transitional figure. Thus, before the opening of 14th National Congress of CCP, the paramount leaders
of CCP such as Deng and Chen Yun made decision on the list of candidates for standing members of the politburo, which to ensure the transition of
power from the so-called second generation CCP leaders such as Deng to third generation CCP leaders such as Jiang and Li Peng. Deng proposed they
consider some guy for the further future transition. Song, as Minister of Organization, recommended Hu as an ideal candidate to Deng. As a result,
in his 50's, Hu was by far the youngest member of the then seven-member Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China, and it was quite
obvious Hu would succeed Jiang as the core of 4th generation CCP leaders. From 1993, Hu took the position of secretariat of CCP Center which took
daily run of CCP center, president of Central Party School, which was convenient for him to bring up his own proteges among senior CCP cadres. Hu
was in charge of the ideology work of CCP too. Although Hu was destined to succeed Jiang, he shed spotlights on Jiang carefully and never tried to
steal Jiang's show. When the transition finally took place in the 16th National Congress of CCP in 2002, Jiang was reluctant to leave the power center.
He stuffed the politburo with his Shanghai Clique such as Wu Bangguo, Jia Qinglin, Zeng Qinghong, Huang Ju and Li Changchun, which could ensure Jiang's
control behind the stage.
Since taking over as Party General Secretary at the Sixteenth National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Hu Jintao has appeared
to have a more egalitarian style than his predecessor. Hu and his premier Wen had proposed to set up a Harmony Society which aims at lessening the
inequality and changing the style of GDP first and Welfare Second. They had focused on sectors of the Chinese population that have been left behind
by the economic reform, and has taken a number of high profile trips to the poorer areas of China with the stated goal of understanding these areas
better. Hu and Wen Jiabao have also attempted to move China away from a policy of favoring economic growth at all costs and toward a more balanced
view of growth that includes factors in social inequality and environmental damage, including the use of the green gross domestic product in personnel
decisions. But with Jiang and his clique still controlled most developing areas, Hu and Wen's measures of macroeconomic regulation faced great resistance.
The major early crisis of Hu's leadership was the outbreak of SARS in 2003. Following strong criticism of China by the World Health Organization and
others for initially covering up and responding slowly to the crisis, he sacked several party and government officials, including the health minister,
who was Jiang's protégé and the mayor of Beijing, who was Hu's protégé for Hu having to sacrifice him for compromise. Hu and Wen took steps to increase
the transparency of China's reporting to international health organizations.
Another test of Hu's leadership was Beijing's low key response to protests against the implementation of Article 23 of the Basic Law in Hong Kong
in 2003. In an unprecedented move, the legislation to implement the Article was withdrawn by the Hong Kong government, after a large popular protest
on July 1, 2003. At the same time, Hu gave a public show of support to Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee-Hwa after gauging public mood in Hong Kong.
Many observers see the Central Government's handling of the situation as characteristic of Hu's quiet style, and unlike Tung Chee-Hwa, Hu remains
a popular figure in Hong Kong.
Although Jiang Zemin, then 76, stepped down from the powerful Politburo Standing Committee to make way for a younger "fourth generation" of leadership
led by Hu, there was speculation that Jiang Zemin would retain significant power because Hu is not associated with Jiang's "Shanghai clique", to which
six out of the nine new members of the all-powerful Standing Committee are linked. The 22-member Politburo is elected by the Party's central committee.
Real power in Communist China lies with this committee, which works like an inner cabinet and groups together the country's most influential leaders.
At the 2002 16th Party Congress, the Standing Committee was expanded to include nine members. In addition, Jiang was reelected to the post of Chairman
of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China, a post from which Deng Xiaoping was able to wield power from behind the scenes
as "paramount leader."
China has a history of fallen heirs-apparent, which many observers believe explains the caution with which outside observers have long associated
Hu Jintao. The PRC has been plagued with succession problems, with elder cadres, such as Deng Xiaoping, wielding behind the scenes power through younger
protégés. Deng was able to anoint three party secretaries, and was instrumental in the ousting of two of them, Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang. His third
and final selection, Jiang Zemin, won Deng's continued backing and was the only party secretary in Communist Chinese history to voluntarily leave
his post when his term ended. Even Deng himself fell from grace as party general secretary (not the top communist post during that time) in the 1950s
due to his indifferent support for Maoist economic policies.
At the same time, attempts to draw historical parallels need to be carefully considered. Since the early-1980s, the People's Republic of China has
been marked by increasing institutionalization and rule has been de-personalized. In reaction to the anarchy of the Cultural Revolution, the Communist
Party of China has had as one of its major goals, the creation of an orderly system of succession and mechanism to prevent informal rule and a cult
of personality.
However, speculations around the political rivalry between Jiang and Hu largely subsided when Jiang resigned as Chairman of the Central Military Commission
in September 2004, his last official post. Hu succeeded Jiang as the Chairman of CMC and thus gaining effective control over the state, the party,
as well as the army.
One of the biggest challenges Hu faces is the big inequality between Chinese rich and poor, for which discontent and anger mounted to a degree wreaking
havoc on CCP's reign. Furthermore, the cronyism and corruption plaguing China can drag China into deep crisis too. Also it remains to be seen if Hu
is capable of managing the continued peaceful development of China while avoiding international incidents, at the same time presiding over a unprecedented
increase in Chinese nationalist sentiment.
Observers indicate that Hu distinguishes himself from his predecessor in both domestic and foreign policy. In domestic policy, he seems
to want more openness to the public on governmental functions and meetings. Recently, China's news agency published many Politburo Standing Committee
meeting details. He also cancelled many spendthrift events that are traditionally seen as communist extravagances, such as the lavish send-off and
welcoming-back ceremonies of Chinese leaders when visiting foreign lands. Furthermore the Chinese leadership under Hu has also focused on such problems
as the gap between rich and poor and uneven development between the interior and coastal regions. Both party and state seem to have moved away from
a definition of development that focuses solely on GDP growth and toward a more balanced definition which includes social equality and environment
effects.
In 2004, Hu ordered all cadres from the five major power functions to stop going to the Beidaihe retreat for their annual summer meeting which, before,
was commonly seen as a gathering of ruling elites from both current and elder cadres to decide China's destiny. In foreign policy, he has differed
from his predecessor by actively engaging in the current North Korea nuclear crisis. He has also assured neighbors in the region with the concept
of China's peaceful rise.
At the same time, Hu has contradicted some initial expectations that he was a closet liberal. Hu was a pragmatist and hard-liner as far as any effort
of political reform is concerned. Observers have noted that under Hu, censorship of the news media and harassment of dissidents has increased and
turned severer and more frequent than his predecessor. Although his son-in-law, Mao Daolin used to be CEO of Sina.com, a famous portal of China, Hu
obviously has no taste for the free flow of information on internet. Blocking of websites takes place more frequently, among which include websites
such as Nytimes.com, Washingtonpost.com and Wikipedia. Furthermore, while Hu has attempted to make decision making more transparent and to increase
rule of law he has also explicitly stated that his goal is to strengthen and make the party more efficient rather than weaken the party or move toward
a pluralistic political system. In December 2004, the Hong Kong magazine Open quoted an alleged instruction by Hu to propaganda officials from September
in which he wrote that, when managing ideology, China had to learn from Cuba and North Korea. Although North Korea had encountered temporary economic
problems, its political policies were consistently correct. Open also quoted Hu as calling Mikhail Gorbachev a "betrayer of socialism".
While Hu Jintao has given some signs of being more flexible with regard to political relationships with Taiwan as in his May 17 Statement, he appears
to be unwilling to reconsider Chinese reunification as an ultimate goal or to renounce the use of force if Taiwan were to declare independence. The
combination of both soft and hard approaches were apparent in the Anti-Secession Law which was passed in March 2005 and in the unprecedented meeting
between Hu and Kuomintang leader Lien Chan in April 2005.
SEE Photograph (6)
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Hua Guofeng
B5: 華國鋒; GB: 华国锋; PY: Huà Guófēng; WG: Hua Kuo-feng (February 16, 1921- )- Mao Zedong's designated successor as the paramount leader of the Communist
Party of China and the People's Republic of China. Upon Zhou Enlai's death in 1976, he succeeded him as Premier of the People's Republic of China.
Months later, Mao died, and Hua succeeded Mao as the Chairman of the Communist Party of China, to the surprise and dismay of Jiang Qing and the rest
of the Gang of Four. He brought the Cultural Revolution to an end, ousted the Gang of Four from political power,
but was himself outmaneuvered a couple years later by Deng Xiaoping, who forced Hua into early retirement.
Born in Jiaocheng, Shanxi province as Liu Zhengrong (刘苏铸), Hua joined the Communist Party of China in 1938 as a part of counter-Japanese resistance.
During the mid-1940's he became propaganda chief for the county Party committee.
Hua was elected to the Politburo in 1973 and was minister of public security in 1975. He became acting Premier of the People's Republic of China following
Zhou Enlai's death, in January 1976, full Premier and party vice chairman in April 1976, and Chairman of the Communist Party of China when Mao died,
in September 1976 (although this was not announced to the world until October 12).
During his relatively short leadership, Hua was credited for quickly ousting the Gang of Four from political power and thus became the leader whose
emergence marked the end of the Cultural Revolution as currently dated. Hua's economic and political program involved the restoration of Soviet-style
industrial planning and party control similar to that followed by China before the Great Leap Forward. However, this model was rejected by supporters
of Deng Xiaoping who argued for a more market based economic system. This argument was decisively resolved in Deng's favor in 1978, which is generally
taken as the start of the era of Chinese economic reform.
As Deng Xiaoping gradually regained control over the CPC, Hua was denounced for promoting the Two Whatevers policy and replaced by Zhao Ziyang as
Premier in 1980, and by Hu Yaobang as Party Chairman in 1981. Both Zhao and Hu were protégés of Deng who were dedicated to Chinese economic reform.
Hua Guofeng was demoted to junior Vice Chairman, and when this post was abolished in 1982 he remained as an ordinary member of the Central Committee,
a position which he held until the 16th Party Congress of November 2002 despite having passed the designated retirement age of seventy. The ousting
of Hua was significant in at least two respects. First it demonstrated the unimportance of official titles in the Chinese Communist Party during the
late-1970's and early-1980's. Despite being the official leader of the party, the state, and the army, Hua was unable to defeat a leadership challenge
by Deng Xiaoping. Second, Hua's ousting helped establish a norm within the PRC that political leaders who lost a power struggle would not be physically
harmed or jailed, in contrast to the situations both during the Cultural Revolution and afterwards with the Gang of Four.
It was reported that Hua Guofeng quit the Chinese Communist Party in October 2001 for "health reasons". This report has not been confirmed by the
Communist Party.
SEE Photograph
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Jiang Jieshi
SEE Chiang Kai-shek
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Jiang Qing
GB: 江青; PY: Jiāng Qīng; WG: Chiang Ch'ing (stage name Lan Ping) (1914- May 14, 1991)- Fourth wife of Mao Zedong, and also known as Mme Mao was a
Chinese political leader most famous for forming the Gang of Four.
She was born as Lǐ Shúméng (李淑蒙) in Zhucheng (诸城), Shandong Province. She is also known as Lǐ Jìn (李进) and Lǐ Yúnhè (李云鹤), and was an actress under
the stage name of Lán Píng (蓝苹). Joined the Communist Party of China in 1933 and worked as an actress in Shanghai from 1933 to 1937. In 1939, Kang Sheng
introduced her to Mao Zedong in Yan'an, and she and Mao were later married. After 1949, she worked in the Ministry of Culture.
She became a member of the Politburo in 1969. She was appointed as the deputy director of the Cultural Revolution in 1966, and formed the famous Gang
of Four with Zhang Chunqiao, Yao Wenyuan and Wang Hongwen. From that point on, she was the most powerful figure in China during Mao's last years, and
became the most hated figure of Mao's totalitarian regime.
Jiang incited radical youths organized as Red Guards against other senior political leaders and government officials, including Liu Shaoqi, the President
of the PRC at that time, and Deng Xiaoping, deputy Premier. Internally divided into factions both to the "left" and "right" of Jiang Qing and Mao, not
all Red Guards were friendly to Jiang Qing.
Jiang also directed revolutionary operas and ballets as part of an effort to transform China's culture. The Eight model plays were allegedly created
under her guidance. Critics say her influence on art was too restrictive. At the same time during the Cultural Revolution, the Chinese public began
to detest Madame Mao. She was known to be extremely petty, executing old enemies such as directors and actresses she knew from her days in Shanghai.
Although she championed the Communist ideals of obedience and equality, Qing longed to wear the feminine fashions and sophisticated hairstyles of the
West. When the Filipino First Lady Imelda Marcos visited in the '70s Qing was said to be extremely jealous of her clothes and makeup.
According to Jung Chang's and Jon Halliday's biography of Mao Zedong, Jiang's favorite hobbies included photography, playing cards, and watching foreign
movies, especially Gone with the Wind. She hated noise and would force her servants to wear clothes made from sheepskin so as to minimise noise in her
Beijing Palace.
Jiang first collaborated with then 2nd-in-charge Lin Biao, but after Lin's death in a plane crash in 1971, she turned against him publicly in the Anti-Lin,
Anti-Confucius Campaign. She also spearheaded the campaign against Deng Xiaoping when he fell out of favor in the mid '70s (later saying that this was
under Mao's orders). When an earthquake in Northern China killed 165,000 she was reputed to remark; "Merely thousands have died. Let us not stop the
People's campaign to imprison the bourgeois elements of the Communist Party (referring to Xiaoping.)" The Chinese public became intensely unhappy at
this time and, rather than blaming Mao, chose to blame the more accessible and easy target Jiang Qing. After the death of Mao, the infamous Gang of
Four quickly fell from power and were blamed for the destruction of the Cultural revolution. She was arrested after the death of Mao and the end of
the Cultural Revolution (1976).
At her trial in 1981 she was the only member of the Gang of Four who bothered to argue on her behalf. The Defense's Argument was that she was obeying
the orders of her husband at all times, which to be fair was probably true. It was at this trial that Qing made the famous quote "I was Mao's mad dog.
Whoever he asked me to bite, I bit." She was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve in 1981, and the sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment.
She was released for medical reasons in 1991. She died soon after. Later the government claimed that she killed herself in her apartment, ten days after
her release.
SEE Photograph
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Jiang Zemin
B5: 江澤民; GB: 江泽民; PY: Jiāng Zémín (August 17, 1926- )- The "core of the third generation" of Communist Party of China leaders, serving 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 2004. His theory of the Three Represents has been written into the party and state constitutions. Under his
tutelage, China experienced meteoric economic growth with reforms and improved its relations with the outside world while the Communist Party maintained
its tight control over the government.
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A native of Yangzhou, Jiangsu, Jiang grew up during the years of Japanese occupation.
His uncle died fighting the Japanese, and he was given by his father to his uncle's family to become their male heir. In 1946 he transferred to Jiaotong
University and graduated there in 1947. A mechanical engineer, Jiang received his training at the Stalin Automobile Works in Moscow in the 1950s.
He worked for Changchun's First Automobile Plant. He eventually got transferred to government services, where he began rising in rank, becoming the
Minister of Electronic Industries in 1983. In 1985 he became the Mayor of Shanghai, and subsequently the Shanghai Party boss.
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. Many credited Shanghai's growth during the period to Zhu Rongji.
Jiang, fluent in Romanian and Russian, and somewhat capable of engaging foreign dignitaries with his grounding in Japanese, French, and English language
and literature, had served as Ambassador to Romania.
Jiang was elevated to national politics in 1987, becoming a member of the CPC Central Committee. In 1989, China was in crisis over the Tiananmen Square
protest, and the Central Government was in conflict on how to handle the anti-opening policy 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 boost in a world astonishing rate
during the past decades.) In June, Deng Xiaoping dismissed liberal Zhao Ziyang, who was considered too conciliatory to student protestors. Jiang was
chosen as a compromise candidate over Tianjin's Li Ruihuan by Deng Xiaoping, Premier Li Peng, Chen Yun, and the retired elders following the Tiananmen
crisis. Although not directly involved with the crackdown, he was elevated to the Politburo Standing Committee, and finally General Secretary, after
the protests in Beijing had ended, for his role in averting similar protests in Shanghai.
Unlike Deng, Jiang was believed to be neo-conservative in ideology, and halted some progress from Dengist reforms. Deng died in early 1997, and China
was not fully out of the Deng era. Jiang had inherited a China with rampant government corruption, and regional economies growing too fast for stability
of the entire country. Deng's ideas 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 Entreprises (SOE's), and a staggering unemployment
rate, which led to complaints about the government becoming common household talk. Jiang's biggest aim in the economy was stability and equality,
and he believed that a stable government with highly centralized power would be a prerequisite.
Jiang is believed to be the first Chinese leader to truly manipulate the media to his advantage, and using many ways at that. Beginning in 1996, Jiang
began a series of reforms in the state-controlled media aimed at promoting the "core of leadership", and at the same time crushing his opponents.
The People's Daily and CCTV-1's 7PM News all had Jiang-related events as the front-page or top stories. He appeared casual in front of Western media,
and would often use foreign languages in front of the camera. Since 1999, the media had played an integral role in the campaign against the Falun
Gong movement. Jiang had also began arresting leaders and breaking up demonstrations, despite protests by human rights groups. He has also been criticized
by human rights groups for not continuing political reform.
In 2001, Jiang spent 4.2 billion RMB (approx. US$500 million) to build labor camps, mostly for Falun Gong practitioners and others labeled as dissidents.
Hundreds of thousands remain in forced labor camps, including US citizen Charles Lee. The persecution of Falun Gong and other groups goes unabated,
despite Jiang's apparent fall from power.
Jiang did not specialize in economics, and in 1997 handed a big chunk of the economic governance of the country to Zhu Rongji, who became Premier.
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. This was mostly achieved by continuing the process of a transition to a market economy. Strong Party control over
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