Ex-china leader Jiang Zemin dies

Former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin died on Wednesday at the age of 96, state media reported, hailing him as a great communist revolutionary.

The major bodies of China’s ruling Communist Party announced his death through a letter that expressed “profound grief”. “Jiang Zemin passed away due to leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai at 12:13 pm on November 30, 2022, at the age of 96, it was announced on Wednesday,” news agency Xinhua said.

His death came after all medical treatments had failed, it added, citing the letter.

“Comrade Jiang Zemin was an outstanding leader... a great Marxist, a great proletarian revolutionary, statesman, military strategist and diplomat, a long-tested communist fighter, and an outstanding leader of the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics,” it said.

“During the serious political turmoil in China in the spring and summer of 1989, Comrade Jiang Zemin supported and implemented the correct decision of the Party Central Committee to oppose unrest, defend the socialist state power and safeguard the fundamental interests of the people,” state broadcaster CCTV said on Wednesday.

When Jiang replaced Deng Xiaoping as leader in 1989, China was still in the early stages of economic modernisation.

By the time he retired as president in 2003, China was a member of the World Trade Organization, Beijing had secured the 2008 Olympics, and the country was well on its way to superpower status.

Analysts say Jiang and his “Shanghai Gang” faction continued to exert influence over communist politics long after he left the top job, including in the selection of Xi Jinping as leader in 2012.