Zhao Ziyang 赵紫阳
General Secretary of the Communist Party of China
In office 1987 – 1989
Preceded by	Hu Yaobang
Succeeded by	Jiang Zemin
3rd Premier of the People's Republic of China
In office June, 1983 – November, 1987
Preceded by	Hua Guofeng
Succeeded by	Li Peng
Born	17 October 1919 (1919-10-17) Hua County, Henan, China
Died	17 January 2005 Beijing, China
Nationality	Chinese
Political party	Communist Party of China

Zhao Ziyang (simplified Chinese: 赵紫阳; traditional Chinese: 趙紫陽; pinyin: Zhào Zǐyáng; Wade-Giles: Chao Tzu-yang) (October 17, 1919–January 17, 2005) was a politician in the People's Republic of China. The General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee ( is the highest ranking official within the Communist Party of China and heads the Secretariat Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's Jiang Zemin ( born 17 August 1926 was the "core of the third generation " of Communist Party of China leaders serving as General Secretary of The Premier of the State Council ( sometimes incorrectly referred to as the "Prime Minister" is the Chairman of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Hua Guofeng ( (16 February 1921 &ndash 20 August 2008 born as Su Zhu ( was Mao Zedong 's designated successor as the Paramount leader of the Li Peng ( (b 20 October 1928 was the Premier of China between 1987 and 1998 the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Events 539 BC - King Cyrus The Great of Persia marches into the city of Babylon, releasing the Jews from almost Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Henan ( is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES The Communist Party of China ( CPC) ( also known as the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) is the founding and ruling political party of the Pinyin, more formally Hanyu pinyin, is the most common Standard Mandarin Romanization system in use Wade-Giles (ˌweɪdˈʤaɪlz) sometimes abbreviated Wade, is a Romanization system (phonetic notation and Transcription) for the Mandarin Events 539 BC - King Cyrus The Great of Persia marches into the city of Babylon, releasing the Jews from almost Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES He was Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1980 to 1987, and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1987 to 1989. The Premier of the State Council ( sometimes incorrectly referred to as the "Prime Minister" is the Chairman of the State Council of the People's Republic of China Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) The General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee ( is the highest ranking official within the Communist Party of China and heads the Secretariat The Communist Party of China ( CPC) ( also known as the Chinese Communist Party ( CCP) is the founding and ruling political party of the Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) As a high-ranking government official, he was a leading reformer who implemented market reforms that greatly increased production and sought measures to streamline the bloated bureaucracy and fight corruption. An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it in an Organisation or A market economy is a realized Social system based on the Division of labour in which the prices of Goods and Services are determined in a Bureaucracy is the structure and set of regulations in place to control activity usually in large organizations and government Political corruption is the use of governmental powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain Once slated as Deng Xiaoping's successor, Zhao Ziyang was purged for his sympathetic stance toward the student demonstrators in the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 and spent the last fifteen years of his life under house arrest. Deng Xiaoping ( 22 August 1904 19 February 1997) was a prominent Chinese Revolutionary, Politician, Pragmatist and Reformer In History and Political science, to purge is to remove people considered by the group in power to be "undesirable" from a Government, Political The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 culminating in the Tiananmen Square Massacre (referred to in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident, to avoid confusion with two In Justice and Law, house arrest (also called home confinement, home detention, or electronic monitoring) is a measure by which

Rise to power

Zhao was born Zhao Xiuye (赵修业), but changed his given name to Ziyang while attending middle school. The son of a wealthy landlord in Hua County, Henan province, he joined the Communist Youth League in 1932 and worked underground as a Communist Party official during the Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) and subsequent Chinese Civil War. Henan ( is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the central part of the country The Communist Youth League of China also known as the China Youth League (中国共产主义青年团 Pinyin: Zhōngguó Gòngchǎnzhǔyì Qīngniántuán Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. The Second Sino-Japanese War ( July 7, 1937 to September 9, 1945) was a major war fought between the Republic of China and the His father was killed by party officials in the late 1940s. The 1940s decade ran from 1940 to 1949 Events and trends The 1940s was a period between the radical 1930s and the conservative 1950s which also leads the period to be He rose to prominence in the party in Guangdong from 1951 and introduced numerous successful agricultural reforms. Guangdong ( EFEO: Kouangtong; Pinyin Guǎngdōng; Postal map spelling: Kwangtung) is a province on the In 1962, Zhao began to disband the commune system in order to return private land to peasants while assigning production contracts to individual households. Year 1962 ( MCMLXII) was a Common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The people's commune ( in the People's Republic of China, were formerly the highest of three administrative levels in rural areas during the period of 1958 to 1982-85 until A peasant is an agricultural worker who subsists by working a small plot of ground He also directed a harsh purge of cadres accused of corruption or having ties to the Kuomintang. By 1965 Zhao was the Party secretary of Guangdong province, despite not being a member of the Communist Party Central Committee. Year 1965 ( MCMLXV) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China ( Chinese: 中国共产党中央委员会 Pinyin: Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì formerly

As a supporter of the reforms of Liu Shaoqi, he was dismissed as Guangdong party leader in 1967 during the Cultural Revolution, paraded through Guangzhou in a dunce cap and denounced as "a stinking remnant of the landlord class". Liu Shaoqi ( (24 November 1898 12 November 1969 was a Chinese revolutionary statesman and theorist Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. Guangzhou ( Jyutping: Gwong²zau¹; Yale: Gwóngjàu) is the Capital and a Sub-provincial city A dunce cap, also variously known as a dunce hat, dunce's cap, or dunce's hat, is a Pointy hat. He spent four years in forced labor at a factory. Unfree labour is a generic or collective term for those work relations especially in modern or early modern history in which people are employed against their will A factory (previously manufactory) or manufacturing plant is an industrial Building where workers manufacture goods In 1971 he was assigned to work as an official in Inner Mongolia and then returned to Guangdong in 1972. Year 1971 ( MCMLXXI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the 1971 Gregorian calendar. Inner Mongolia ( Mongolian:, Öbür mongɣul; occasionally romanized to Nei Mongol is the Mongol Year 1972 ( MCMLXXII) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

Zhao was rehabilitated by Zhou Enlai in 1973, appointed to the Central Committee, and sent to China's largest province (not including autonomous regions such as Tibet, etc), Sichuan, as first party secretary in 1975. Political rehabilitation is the process by which a member of a political organization or government who has fallen into disgrace is restored to public life Zhou Enlai ( (5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976 was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from 1949 until his death in January 1976 Year 1973 ( MCMLXXIII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the 1973 Gregorian calendar. The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China ( Chinese: 中国共产党中央委员会 Pinyin: Zhōngguó Gòngchǎndǎng Zhōngyāng Wěiyuánhuì formerly ( Postal map spelling: Szechwan and Szechuan) is a province in western China with its capital in Chengdu. Sichuan had been economically devastated by the Great Leap Forward, and the consequent Cultural Revolution. An economy is the realized social system of production exchange distribution and consumption of goods and services of a country or other area The Great Leap Forward ( of the People's Republic of China (PRC was an economic and social plan used from 1958 to 1960 which aimed to use China 's vast population The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China was a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China that manifested into Zhao turned the province around by introducing radical and successful Market-oriented rural reforms, which led to an increase in industrial production by 81% and agricultural output by 25% within three years. Deng Xiaoping saw the "Sichuan Experience" as the model for Chinese economic reform and had Zhao inducted into the Politburo as an alternate member in 1977 and as a full member in 1979. The Chinese economic reform ( refers to the program of economic reforms called " Socialism with Chinese characteristics " in the People's Republic of Politburo, short for Political Bureau, Russian Politicheskoye Buro, is the executive organization for a number of Political parties, most notably He joined the Politburo Standing Committee in 1982. The Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (PSC, abbreviated) is a committee whose membership varies between 5 and 9 people usually men and includes

Survived Assassination Attempts

Since Sichuan province was a strong base of Radicalism during the Cultural Revolution, the ardent followers of the Gang of Four vehemently opposed Zhao's reforms. ( Postal map spelling: Szechwan and Szechuan) is a province in western China with its capital in Chengdu. The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China was a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China that manifested into The Gang of Four ( was the name given to a leftist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist party officials However, Zhao's policy had huge popular support and the supporters of the Gang of Four turned to assassination after all other supposedly legal means failed. Over the years in Sichuan during the Cultural Revolution, there were no fewer than half a dozen attempts on Zhao's life, and the most serious one happened when Zhao's jeep was ambushed in a valley during one of his trips, where he narrowly escaped death, but in an attempt to save Zhao's life, his driver/secretary was crushed and buried by an artificially induced landslide. ( Postal map spelling: Szechwan and Szechuan) is a province in western China with its capital in Chengdu. The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China was a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China that manifested into Although attempts on Zhao's only resulted in this single loss of life, the last culprits were not caught until 1983, well after the end of the Cultural Revolution. The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution in the People’s Republic of China was a struggle for power within the Communist Party of China that manifested into

Rehabilitation

Zhao was rehabilitated in 1971 and appointed Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Revolutionary Committee secretary and Vice Chairman in March 1972. Inner Mongolia ( Mongolian:, Öbür mongɣul; occasionally romanized to Nei Mongol is the Mongol He was elevated to the 10th Central Committee in August 1973 and returned to Guangdong as 1st CCP Secretary and Revolutionary Committee Chair in April 1974. He added Guangdong Military District Political Commissar to his titles in September 1975. Zhao was transferred to Sichuan, and in addition to his party titles, became Political Commissar of the Chengdu Military Region in December 1975. ^[1]

Reformist leader

After six months as vice-premier, Zhao was appointed premier in 1980 to replace Hua Guofeng, Mao's designated successor, who was being pushed out of power by Deng Xiaoping. Hua Guofeng ( (16 February 1921 &ndash 20 August 2008 born as Su Zhu ( was Mao Zedong 's designated successor as the Paramount leader of the Mao Zedong ( 26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976) was a Chinese Military and political leader who led He developed "preliminary stage theory," a course for transforming the socialist system that set the stage for much of the later Chinese economic reform. Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution As premier, he implemented many of the policies that were successful in Sichuan, including giving limited self-management to industrial enterprises and increased control over production to peasants. Zhao sought to develop coastal provinces with special economic zones that could lure foreign investment and create export hubs. A Special Economic Zone ( SEZ) is a geographical region that has economic laws that are more liberal than a country's typical economic laws Foreign direct investment ( FDI) in its classic definition is defined as a company from one country making a physical investment into building a factory in another country In Economics, an export is any good or Commodity, Transported from one country to another country in a Legitimate fashion This led to rapid increases in both agricultural and light-industrial production throughout the 1980s, but his economic reforms were criticized for causing inflation. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. In economics inflation or price inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services over a period of time Zhao also persisted in advocating an open foreign policy, fostering good relations with western nations that could aid China's economic development. The Foreign relations of the People's Republic of China draw upon traditions extending back to imperial China in the Qing Dynasty The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings

Zhao was a solid believer in the party, but he defined socialism much differently than party conservatives. Zhao called political reform "the biggest test facing socialism. " He believed economic progress was inextricably linked to democratization. Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is held completely by the people under a free electoral system As early as 1986, Zhao became the first high-ranking Chinese leader to call for change, by offering a choice of election candidates from the village level all the way up to membership in the Central Committee. Year 1986 ( MCMLXXXVI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link displays 1986 Gregorian calendar) An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office

In the 1980s, Zhao was branded by many as a revisionist of Marxism. Marxism is the political philosophy and practice derived from the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. He advocated government transparency and a national dialogue that included ordinary citizens in the policymaking process, which made him popular with the masses. In Sichuan, where Zhao implemented economic restructuring in the 1970s, there was a saying: "要吃粮，找紫阳 (yao chi liang, zhao Ziyang). " The wordplay on his name, loosely translated, means "if you want to feed yourself, follow Ziyang. "

In January 1987, Deng forced reformist leader Hu Yaobang to resign for being too lenient to student protestors; Zhao replaced him as CPC General Secretary, whose vacated premiership was in turn filled by Li Peng. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's Li Peng ( (b 20 October 1928 was the Premier of China between 1987 and 1998 the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress This put Zhao in the position to succeed Deng as paramount leader. While General Secretary Zhao favored loosening government controls over industry and creating free-enterprise zones in the coastal regions, Premier Li favored a cautious approach that relied more on central planning and guidance. A planned economy or directed economy is an Economic system in which the Government or Workers' councils manages the Economy.

In the 1987 Communist Party Congress Zhao declared that China was in "a primary stage of socialism" that could last 100 years. Under this premise, China needed to experiment with a variety of economic systems to stimulate production. An economic system is a System that involves the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services between Zhao proposed to separate the roles of the party and state, a proposal that has since become taboo. According to western observers, the two years Zhao served as General Secretary were the most open in modern Chinese history—many limitations on freedom of speech and freedom of press were relaxed, allowing intellectuals to freely propose improvements for the country. Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without Censorship or Limitation. Freedom Constitutional or statutory protections pertaining to freedom of the press

Equally important, in the economic arena, Zhao was one of the first leaders that advocate the reduction of state control in enterprises by increasing private ownership via stock. Although the idea also became taboo during Zhao's era, it did begin to become a reality since 1990s. A taboo is a strong Social prohibition (or ban) against words objects actions or discussions that are considered undesirable or offensive by a group culture

Zhao's proposal in May 1988 to accelerate price reform led to widespread popular complaints about rampant inflation and gave opponents of rapid reform the opening to call for greater centralization of economic controls and stricter prohibitions against Western influence. This precipitated a political debate, which grew more heated through the winter of 1988 to 1989.

The second half of 1988 saw the increasing deterioration of Zhao's political environment. In fact, Zhao found himself in multi-front turf battles with the party elders, who grew increasingly dissatisfied with Zhao's hands-off approach to ideological matters, as well as the conservative faction in the politburo led by Li Peng and Yao Yilin, who were constantly at odds with him in economic and fiscal policy making. Politburo, short for Political Bureau, Russian Politicheskoye Buro, is the executive organization for a number of Political parties, most notably Li Peng ( (b 20 October 1928 was the Premier of China between 1987 and 1998 the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress In the mean time, Zhao was under growing pressure to combat the runaway corruption by the rank-and-file officials and their family members. As the year of 1989 kicked off, it was evident that Zhao was faced with an increasingly difficult uphill battle, to some extent he was fighting for his own political survival. If he was unable to turn things around rapidly, a showdown with the party conservatives would be all but inevitable. As it happened, the student protests triggered by the sudden death of former CCP General Secretary Hu Yaobang, widely seen as a reform-minded leader, provided Zhao with a golden opportunity to regain political upperhand and to advance his reform agenda. Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's

Purged after Tiananmen Square Protests

Zhao Ziyang (accompanied by then-Chief of Staff Wen Jiabao) addressed the student protestors at Tiananmen on May 19, 1989. This is a Chinese name; the family name is Wen. Wen Jiabao ( (born 15 September 1942 is the Premier of the Events 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships 110 men and Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) He apologized to the students, saying "Students, we came too late. We are sorry. "

The death of Hu Yaobang on April 15, 1989, coupled with growing economic hardship caused by high inflation, provided the backdrop for the large-scale protest of 1989 by students, intellectuals, and other parts of a disaffected urban population. Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's Events 1450 - Battle of Formigny: Toward the end of the Hundred Years' War, the French attack and nearly annihilate English Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) The word student is etymologically derived through Middle English from the Latin second-type conjugation Verb "studēre" An intellectual (from the adjective meaning "involving thought and reason" is a person who tries to use his or her Intelligence and analytical thinking, Student demonstrators, taking advantage of the loosening political atmosphere, reacted to a variety of causes of discontent, which they attributed to the slow pace of reform. Ironically, some of the original invective was also directed against Zhao. The party hardliners increasingly came to the opposite conclusion, regretting an excessively rapid pace of change for causing the mood of confusion and frustration rife among college students. The protesters called for an end to official corruption and for defense of freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution of the People's Republic of China. The Constitution of the People's Republic of China ( is the highest law within the People's Republic of China. Protests also spread through many other cities, including Shanghai and Guangzhou. Shanghai ( 上[[wikt 海|海]] is the largest city in China in terms of population and one of the largest urban areas in the world with over 20 million Guangzhou ( Jyutping: Gwong²zau¹; Yale: Gwóngjàu) is the Capital and a Sub-provincial city

The tragic events of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 sealed Zhao's fate and rendered impossible any further democratic movement. The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 culminating in the Tiananmen Square Massacre (referred to in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident, to avoid confusion with two While he was paying an official visit to Pyongyang, the party hard-liners exploited the opportunity to declare the ongoing protests "counter-revolutionary. Pyongyang (pʰjʌŋjaŋ is the Capital and largest City of North Korea, located on the Taedong River, at. " Upon returning from Pyongyang, Zhao made several attempts to steer the course toward what he called "a track based upon democracy and the rule of law". He opened up channels for direct dialogues between students and the government at multiple levels. He also ordered the news media to cover the student demonstrations with unprecedented openness. A number of legislative initiatives aimed at the reform of press, news media and education were also under way. However, Zhao's initiatives, along with his conciliatory attitude toward the students, were seen by the elders and other party hard-liners as hastened steps toward breaking free the party control, therefore a recipe for ultimate disaster. The evening of May 16 marked the point of no return of Zhao's political career. Events 1204 - Baldwin IX Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire. At the onset of his meeting with the visiting Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Zhao made a stunning announcement declaring that Deng Xiaoping, though officially no longer a member of the party central committee, was still having final say in major decision-making. Zhao's move was viewed as an unmistakable sign of departing company with the party leadership, especially the aging paramount leader. It was at this point that Zhao completely lost the trust of Deng Xiaoping, his long-time political patron and mentor. On the night of May 18, Zhao was summoned to Deng's residence and a hastily called Politburo Standing Committee was called to endorse martial law with Zhao casting the lone dissenting vote. Events 1152 - Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. Martial law is the system of rules that takes effect when the military takes control of the normal administration of justice

Shortly before 5 A. M. on the morning of May 19, Zhao appeared in Tiananmen Square and wandered among the crowd of protesters. Events 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships 110 men and Using a bullhorn, he had the following famous speech with the students at the square. It was first broadcast through China Central Television nationwide. China Central Television or Chinese Central Television, commonly abbreviated as CCTV ( is the major television broadcaster in Mainland China

" 我們已經老了，無所謂了。" - "We are already old, it doesn't matter to us any more. " became a famous quote after that. That was his last public appearance.

House arrest until death

The protesters did not disperse. A day after Zhao's May 19 visit to Tiananmen Square, Premier Li Peng publicly declared martial law. Events 1535 - French explorer Jacques Cartier sets sail on his second voyage to North America with three ships 110 men and In the power struggle that ensued, Zhao was stripped of all his positions. What motivated Zhao remains, even today, a topic of debate by many. Some say he went into the square hoping a conciliatory gesture would gain him leverage against hard-liners like Premier Li Peng. Li Peng ( (b 20 October 1928 was the Premier of China between 1987 and 1998 the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress Others believe he supported the protesters and did not want to see them hurt when the military was called in. After the incident, Zhao was placed under house arrest and replaced as General Secretary by Jiang Zemin, who had suppressed similar protests in Shanghai without much bloodshed. In Justice and Law, house arrest (also called home confinement, home detention, or electronic monitoring) is a measure by which

Zhao remained under tight supervision and was allowed to leave his courtyard compound or receive visitors only with permission from the highest echelons of the party. There were occasional reports of him attending the funeral of a dead comrade, visiting other parts of China or playing golf at Beijing courses, but the government rather successfully kept him hidden from news reports and history books. Over that period, only a few snapshots of a gray-haired Zhao leaked out to the media. On at least two occasions Zhao wrote letters, addressed to the Chinese government, in which he put forward the case for a reassessment of the Tiananmen Massacre. One of those letters appeared on the eve of the Communist Party's 15th National Congress. The other came during a 1998 visit to China by U.S. President Bill Clinton. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III, August 19 1946 served as the forty-second President of the United States Neither was ever published in mainland China.

Death and muted response

In February 2004, Zhao had a pneumonia attack that led to a severe lung malfunctioning and was hospitalized for three weeks. February 2004 was the second month of 2004 in the Gregorian calendar. Pneumonia is an inflammatory illness of the Lung. Frequently it is described as lung Parenchyma / alveolar inflammation and abnormal Zhao was hospitalized again with pneumonia on December 5, 2004. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Reports of his death were officially denied in early January 2005. January 2005: ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September Later, on January 15, he was reported to be in a coma after multiple strokes. Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign In Medicine, a coma (from the Greek koma, meaning deep sleep is a profound state of Unconsciousness. A stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain functions due to a disturbance in the blood vessels supplying blood to the brain According to activist Frank Lu, Vice President Zeng Qinghong visited Zhao in the hospital. Zeng Qinghong ( (born July 1939 was the Vice-President of the People's Republic of China from 2003 to 2008 Zhao died on January 17 in a Beijing hospital at 07:01 at the age of 85. Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca He is survived by his second wife, Liang Boqi, and five children (a daughter and four sons).

The government's response to Zhao's death was notably muted, probably out of fear that mass mourning would spark national protests as had occurred after the deaths of Zhou Enlai and Hu Yaobang. Zhou Enlai ( (5 March 1898 – 8 January 1976 was the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, serving from 1949 until his death in January 1976 Hu Yaobang ( Chinese: 胡耀邦 Pinyin: Hú Yàobāng Wade-Giles: Hu Yao-pang 20 November 1915&ndash15 April 1989 was a leader of the People's The official government Xinhua News Agency reported as "Zhao Ziyang died at 85" in the English version,^[3] while the Chinese title was "Comrade Zhao Ziyang died. " It did not make any note of his official titles or legacy as a leader. This is considered unusual, because people who have lower ranks than he did would usually get lots of titles, such as the great revolutionist, loved by the people, etc. Zhao's death was not mentioned on state-run television and radio programs. All Chinese newspapers carried the exact same 59-word obituary on the day following his death, leaving the main means of mass dissemination through the Internet. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks [2] Internet forums, such as the Strong Nation Forum and the SINA.com Forum were flooded with messages expressing condolences for Zhao, but these messages were promptly deleted by moderators, leading to more postings attacking the moderators for deleting the postings. An, or message board, is a Bulletin board system in the form of a discussion site The Strong Nation Forum is a Chinese Bulletin board on the Website of the People's Daily, an official newspaper of the Communist Sinacom is the largest Chinese-language Infotainment Web portal. A forum moderator, often shortened to just mod, is a person granted special powers to enforce the rules of an Internet forum ( Message board) or Electronic

In Hong Kong, 10,000–15,000 people attended the candlelight vigil in remembrance of Zhao. Hong Kong ( officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, is a territory located on China 's south coast on the Pearl River Delta, and borders Mainlanders such as Chen Juoyi said that it was illegal for Hong Kong legislators to join any farewell ceremony, stating ". . . under the 'one country, two systems' a Hong Kong legislator cannot care anything about mainland China. " One country two systems " is an idea originally proposed by Deng Xiaoping during the early 1980s then Paramount Leader of the People's Republic China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National " The statement caused a political storm in Hong Kong that continued for three days after his speech. Szeto Wah, the chairman of The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, said that it was not right for the Communists to suppress the memorial ceremony. Szeto Wah ( Pinyin Situ Hua (born February 28, 1931, hometown Hoi Ping) currently the chairman of The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China (the Alliance) ( Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China The twenty-four pan-democrat legislators went against the chairperson of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, insisting that security be tightened at Tiananmen Square and at Zhao's house, and that the authorities try to prevent any public displays of grief. The Legislative Council ( LegCo) is the Unicameral Legislature of Hong Kong.

Similar memorials were held around the world, notably in New York City and Washington, DC where American government officials and exiled political dissidents attended. The City of New York Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Political dissent refers to any expression designed to convey dissatisfaction with or opposition to the policies of a governing body

Zhao's positions would have normally entitled him to a state funeral, but the PRC government stated that the funerary arrangements for past leaders had been streamlined and state funerals were no longer held. A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony held to honour Heads of state or other important people of national significance Skeptics have questioned whether future funerals of Chinese ex-leaders will be as muted as Zhao's.

On January 29, 2005 the government held a funeral ceremony for him at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery, a place reserved for revolutionary heroes and high government officials, that was attended by some 2,000 mourners that had been pre-approved to attend. Events 904 - Sergius III comes out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed Antipope Christopher. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery ( Simplified Chinese: 八宝山革命公墓 is Beijing's main resting place for revolutionary heroes and high government officials Several dissidents, including Zhao's secretary Bao Tong and Tiananmen Mothers leader Ding Zilin, were kept under house arrest to prevent them from attending. Bao Tong ( born 1932 was former Director of the Office of Political Reform of the CPC Central Committee and the Policy Secretary of Zhao Ziyang (趙紫陽 Premier The Tiananmen Mothers is a group of Chinese democracy activists promoting a change in the government's position over the suppression of the Tiananmen Square protests of Professor Ding Zilin ( Chinese: 丁子霖 born December 20, 1936 or January 1, 1939) is currently the leader of the political pressure The most senior official to attend the funeral was Jia Qinglin, fourth in the party hierarchy. Jia Qinglin ( POJ: Ka Kheng-lim born March 1940 in Botou Hebei Province is the fourth ranking member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Mourners were allowed five at a time to view Zhao's flag-covered body and to pay respect to his family. They were forbidden to bring flowers or to inscribe their own messages on the government-issued flowers. There was no eulogy at the ceremony because the government and Zhao's family could not agree on its content: while the government wanted to say he made mistakes, his family refused to accept he did anything wrong. A eulogy is a speech or writing in Praise of a person or thing On the day of his funeral, state television mentioned Zhao's death for the first time and issued a short obituary acknowledging his contribution to economic reforms, but saying he made "serious mistakes" during the 1989 protests. An obituary is an attempt to give an account of the texture and significance of the life of someone who has recently died After the ceremony, Zhao was cremated. Cremation is the act of reducing a Corpse by burning, generally in a crematorium furnace or crematory fire His ashes were taken to his Beijing home as the government denied him a place at Babaoshan.

Push for rehabilitation

In 2005, former NPC Chairman Wan Li joined more than 20 retired Politburo members, including Tian Jiyun, former Vice Premier, in asking the Central Government to rehabilitate Zhao’s name and hold memorial services for him for his many important contributions to China. Wan Li ( Traditional Chinese: 萬里 Simplified Chinese: 万里 (born December 1916 was during a long administrative career in the People's Republic of China The Chinese government agreed to hold a ceremony to honor the late Communist Party chief Zhao Ziyang, but the response fell far short of satisfying the requests from both inside and outside the CPC.

See also

• Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989
• Politics of the People's Republic of China
• History of the People's Republic of China
• Censorship in the People's Republic of China
• Internet censorship in mainland China

References

[3]

External links

• Alliance Introduction (profile by the democracy movement alliance; in Chinese)
• 赵紫阳同志逝世, Zhao Ziyang died at 85 (official Chinese news agency, Xinhua News Agency)
• China's Purged Chinese leader dies (CNN)
• Obituary: Zhao Ziyang (BBC)
• Chinese media muted on Zhao death (BBC)
• Online tributes to Zhao Ziyang (BBC)
• The Prisoner of Conscience: Zhao Ziyang, 1919-2005 (TIME)
• Chinese Leader Purged for Supporting Tiananmen Protesters Dies at 85 (The New York Times)
• China Gives Zhao's Death Scant Notice (The New York Times)
• Purged Chinese Leader Zhao Ziyang Dies at 85 (The Washington Post)
• Zhao's Death Puts China in Quandary (The Washington Post)
• The man who came too late (The Economist)
• Media Barred from Covering Death of Former Communist Leader (International Freedom of Expression Exchange)
• Retired Politburo Members Appeal for Zhao Ziyang’s Rehabilitation (The Epoch Times)
• He Would Have Changed China Perry Link essay on Ziyang from The New York Review of Books