Go to contents

China Picks Seven Leaders

Posted November. 06, 2002 22:58,   

한국어

With only two days left before the 16th Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Congress, which is held every five years, CNN, US news agency, reported yesterday that the Chinese Communist Party has already appointed seven members of the supreme Politburo Standing Committee. CNN told that the members of the committee had been confirmed twd days before Chinese President Jiang Zemin visited the US on Oct. 20.

The seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee are Hu Jintao, Vice President; Wen Jiabao, Vice Premier; Zeng Qinghong, Communist party affairs chief; Wu Bangguo, First Vice-Premier; Huang Ju, a veteran Shanghai party chief; Luo Gan, chief of the party`s anti-graft watchdog: the Central Commission for Disciplinary Inspection; Jia Qinglin, a former party boss of Beijing.

This shows that China is going through a reformative move, in which the existing six members of the committee should step down except for Hu Jintao

Foreign observers say that President Jian Zemin gave up his post as General Secretary of the Communist Party, but he made it clear that his four confidants, Zeng Qinghong, Wu Bangguo, Huang Ju and Jia Qinglin, became members of the committee.

Members of the Politburo Standing Committee are selected by 2120 delegates participating in the 16th CCP Congress slated for Nov. 8, but the members are usually appointed by the party leadership in advance.

Sources in Beijing said that seven private entrepreneurs known as "new class" including Jiang Xipei, head of the Yuandong Group, Shen Wenrong, head of the Shagang Steel Group, Zan Shengda, head of the Zongyi Group, and Mr Sun Shenlin, head of the Chongqing Nanfang Group will be included in the 2120 delegates to attend the 16th CCP Congress.

According to sources, Shen Wenrong is selected by Forbes magazine as one of 37 richest men, Sun Shenlin as one of 100 richest men.

Among the seven private businessmen, three are expected to be enrolled as members of the Central Committee, the nation`s supreme policy-making body, for the first time in the history of the Chinese Communist Party.

Sources also said that as the party eases the restriction on investment in the private economy and reform the financial system, the nation`s private economy would enter a new phase of development on the occasion of the 16th CCP Congress.

Meanwhile, 1000 steel and textile workers in Ryaoning waged a demonstration demanding the release of four laborers arrested for the protest against the bankruptcy of a state-owned company. The Chinese security authorities are on alert as they are expected to wage another rally in Beijing coincided with the opening of the CCP Congress on Nov.8.



yshwang@donga.com