Devdiscourse: Farewell to Former Premier Zhu Rongji
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Zhu Rongji
Zhu Rongji was a Chinese politician and electrical engineer who served as the 5th premier of China from 1998 to 2003. He also served as member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1992 to 2002, along with CCP general secretary Jiang Zemin.
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business · Premier of China from 1998 to 2003 · politician · engineer · businessperson · statesperson · head of government · also Zhu Rongji, Economic Czar, Rongji Zhu, Rongji
Born 23 October 1928 · Died 12 August 2026 · Q18285
60 published statements · 0 followers
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2026· 8 entries
AOL: Zhu Rongji, Chinese politician who championed ‘an almost Thatcherite economic vision’
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Public attention spiked: 24,147 Wikipedia readers in one day, 158.9× the usual 152, with 83 article edits. Coverage that week: “Zhu Rongji, Chinese politician who championed ‘an almost Thatcherite economic vision’” (AOL).
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Died 2026-08-12.
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“History can never be covered up.”
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“Even if a minefield or the abyss should lie before me, I will march straight ahead without looking back.”
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“I have never intimidated the masses... I only intimidate corrupt officials.”
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“Be realistic and truthful - and tell Hong Kong businessmen honestly that they should go for long-term investments since it is unlikely money can be made in the short haul. AZ Quotes”
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2022· 1 entry
AFP Fact Check rated the claim “Video shows Zhu Rongji did not clap for Xi at China's 20th Party Congress.” Misleading.
Shown as reported and rated by a fact checker, not as an established fact.
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2014· 1 entry
Wrote a rare public letter for the 30th anniversary of Tsinghua School of Economics and Management, but was not able to attend due to poor health
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2013· 2 entries
Under the title: Zhu Rongji on the Record: The Road to Reform
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And 2014 alone he donated 40 million RMB (c
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2012· 1 entry
One of Zhu's proteges, Wang Qishan, became the head of the CCP's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party's main organ in charge of investigating internal corruption
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2009· 1 entry
(an English translation of the book was released in 2011)
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2003· 4 entries
Zhu encouraged PRC politicians to use softer language in discussing the issue of mainland China-Taiwan relations, saying that mainland China and Taiwan should improve economic, transportation, and cultural ties in order
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The State Economic and Trade Commission was restructured into the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission
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Though the bureaucracies in districts far from the capital continued to expand, leading to increased tension between some local governments and the farmers whose income supports them
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Gave a 90-minute address to several thousand delegates in the Great Hall of the People, outlining the "outstanding difficulties and problems" which he expected his successor as premier, Wen Jiabao, would have to face
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2002· 1 entry
Mainland China's trade soared by 18% in the first nine months of 2002, with exports outstripping imports
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2001· 1 entry
Zhu uncovered the largest corruption ring in modern Chinese history, discovering that many of the highest-ranking officials in Fujian had conspired to operate a massive smuggling ring
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2000· 1 entry
The flow of capital into mainland China rose by 10%
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1998· 4 entries
Career landmark: Premier of the People's Republic of China (1998–2003).
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Required the People's Liberation Army to relinquish its involvement in business interests that had been making high-ranking officers and their children rich, and later barred civil servants from taking part in busines
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Reorganized industrial ministries into bureaus under the State Economic and Trade Commission
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Zhu saved the biggest SOEs and allowed thousands of other small and medium-sized firms and factories to go under, assuming that new growth in the private sector could alleviate any surge of unemployment
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1994· 1 entry
Which the PRC had used as a parallel currency system for foreigners
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1993· 4 entries
Fifteen years later, in 2008, the PRC's policy banks and sovereign funds emerged on the global financial scene as some of the world's largest institutional investors, wielding significant influence over financial markets
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Career landmark: Vice Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China (1993–1998).
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Serving under premier Li Peng, where he pursued further economic reforms
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Li had lost influence within the government and was no longer able to block many of Zhu's reforms
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1992· 4 entries
The PRC was challenged with excessive investment in fixed assets, excessive monetary supply, and chaotic financial markets
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Career landmark: member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party (1992–2002).
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Career landmark: member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (1992–2002).
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After which he also retained his other posts
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1991· 1 entry
Largely due to his success in managing the development of Shanghai, Zhu was promoted into the central government in Beijing, where he focused on planning and resolving economic projects and issues as the vice premier of
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1990· 2 entries
“You have your system of democracy, and we have our system of democracy. But that does not mean we have nothing in common.”
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Zhu led a delegation of PRC mayors to meet with local and national political and business leaders from the United States, attempting to maintain and improve political and business relationships
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1989· 3 entries
Career landmark: Secretary of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (1989–1991).
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When large-scale protests broke out in numerous cities around the PRC, there were also large, well-organized protests in Shanghai
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When Jiang was promoted to CCP general secretary
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1988· 4 entries
When some family members asked him over dinner if he could bend the PRC's residency (hukou) laws to allow them to move to Shanghai, he turned them down, responding: "What I can do, I have done already
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Career landmark: mayor of Shanghai (1988–1991).
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After mayor Jiang Zemin became Party Secretary of Shanghai, Zhu was promoted to work as the mayor of Shanghai, which was then China's largest, most industrially developed, and wealthiest city
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Became the mayor of Shanghai, where he pursued economic reforms
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1984· 1 entry
Was named the founding dean of the Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management
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1979· 1 entry
Was reassigned to the State Economic Commission, the successor of the State Planning Commission, where he served as vice-minister from 1983 to 1987
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1978· 1 entry
Was formally rehabilitated and allowed to rejoin the CCP
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1976· 2 entries
Deng Xiaoping rose to power and subsequently initiated political reforms leading to the rehabilitation of victims of the Cultural Revolution
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And the rise of Deng Xiaoping afterwards, Zhu was politically rehabilitated and allowed to rejoin the CCP
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1962· 2 entries
Following the famine and industrial collapse caused by the Great Leap Forward, Zhu was pardoned (but not politically rehabilitated), and assigned to work as an engineer at the National Economic Bureau of the State Planni
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After the famine caused by the Great Leap Forward, being again assigned at the State Planning Commission
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1958· 1 entry
During the Anti-Rightist Campaign, for which he was persecuted, demoted, disgraced, and thrown out of the Communist Party in January 1958
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1957· 2 entries
Causing him to be labeled a "rightist" in the subsequent Anti-Rightist Campaign, leading to Zhu's demotion and expulsion from the CCP
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During the Hundred Flowers Campaign, he criticized Mao's economic policies, saying that they promoted "irrational high growth"
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1951· 2 entries
Became the chairman of the Tsinghua Student Union
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Studied at Tsinghua University (1951).
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1949· 2 entries
The same year that Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China, and he graduated from Tsinghua University with a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering in 1951
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The same year the People's Republic of China was established
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1928· 2 entries
Born 1928-10-23.
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Zhu Rongji was born in Changsha County, Hunan, on 23 October 1928 to a family of intellectualsHis father died before he was born, and his mother died when he was nine.
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