- Published
Flags at government sites are flying at half-mast and security vehicles are parked in the heart of Beijing, as China mourns former Premier Zhu Rongji.
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China → publish → Rongji
Zhu died of an illness last week at 97 and was cremated at a funeral in Beijing on Tuesday.
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Zhu → die → Tuesday
The ceremony, attended by senior leaders including President Xi Jinping, was kept low-key.
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ceremony → attend → Jinping
No footage has been released.
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footage → release → ?
Zhu, who served as China's premier from 1998 to 2003, is remembered as one of the country's most important economic reformers.
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who → serve → reformers
While hailing the late premier as a "loyal" party member, the Chinese state is also wary that public mourning for his era of reform can easily turn into veiled criticisms of the current government under Xi.
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mourning → hail → Xi
Xi was among the leaders who had visited Zhu in hospital or sent condolences after his death, Chinese state media reported on Tuesday.
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media → visit → Tuesday
Others included incumbent premier Li Qiang and ex-president Hu Jintao.
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Others → include → Qiang
After his death, state media described Zhu as an "outstanding member of the Chinese Communist Party" and a "time-tested and loyal Communist fighter".
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media → describe → Party
He was cremated at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery, an exclusive resting place for high-ranking officials and other prominent figures.
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He → cremate → officials
Meanwhile, online, posts about Zhu have been contained and censored - including an essay written by economist Zhao Jian, which remembered Zhu's era as a time when people were "properly poor" but saw a clear future ahead.
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people → contain → future
"There were no smartphones then, no short-form videos and no screens filled by the purveyors of anxiety," he wrote.
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he → be → anxiety
"The sky was blue, life moved slowly and people could say what they really thought."
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they → move → what
Zhao's comments were removed from WeChat the day after they were published.
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they → remove → WeChat
The deaths of former premier Zhou Enlai in 1976 and former CCP general secretary Hu Yaobang in 1989 prompted widespread outpourings of grief that morphed into protests.
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that → prompt → protests
Zhu died just days before the Communist Party leadership gathered to commemorate the birth centenary of President Jiang Zemin, who died in 2022.
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who → die → 2022
The death of Zhu and Jiang, two prominent leaders from the same era, has prompted a wave of nostalgia among many Chinese people for a time when the country looked as if it was going in a different direction - when it appeared that it may open to the world and allow more freedom for its people.
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it → prompt → people
Candour of a bygone era
Previously purged under Mao Zedong's regime, Zhu was brought back into the fold after Mao's death in 1976.
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Zhu → purge → 1976
Zhu served as premier alongside Jiang Zemin, who became Communist Party chief in 1989 and president in 1993.
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who → serve → 1993
The two men served alongside each other at the top of China's leadership from 1998 to 2003, leading China through an era of rapid economic growth and entry into global trade.
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men → serve → trade
During that time, China pushed through painful changes: shuttering chronically unprofitable state firms, dismantling the old housing system in favour of a commercial property market, weathering the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s and joining the World Trade Organization in 2001.
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China → push → 2001
But what appears to captivate Chinese people from that era was that both had a certain style - a common touch.
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both → appear → style
A Chinese state media documentary about Jiang Zemin's life shows him banging on tables one minute and erupting in laughter the next.
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him → show → laughter
Zhu, meanwhile, once labelled rogue bankers as "half-wits" and described the flood dykes lining the Yangtze River as "flimsy and porous as tofu dregs".
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Zhu → label → dregs
He was also known for his deadpan humour, like at a news conference in 1999, when he was asked about allegations that China had donated to US President Bill Clinton's Democratic Party.
"
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China → know → Party
If the political contribution were to be really that effective, and I have $146 billion of foreign exchange reserve, I can put out at least $10 billion for that purpose.
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I → have → purpose
That would be too foolish," he said, drawing laughter from the crowd.
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he → say → crowd
The day he died, the Jiang Zemin documentary featured Zhu explaining how he persuaded his comrades to implement tough reforms.
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he → die → reforms
"I'm not here to talk about pros and cons.
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I → talk → pros
I am here to talk about how to get things done," he is heard saying.
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he → talk → ?
Circulating on social media is a picture of Jiang laughing together with Zhu and praised their candid communication.
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Jiang → circulate → communication
"They told the truth, shouldered the responsibility and spared no effort in serving the people," the post read.
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post → tell → people
It's a style that has captivated Chinese audiences and stands in contrast with the current carefully choreographed leadership style.
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that → captivate → style
The passing of the two leaders into China's history books marks a definitive end to the breakneck reforms of the 1990s and early 2000s, with an emphasis on private entrepreneurship and wealth creation.
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passing → mark → entrepreneurship
That stands in contrast to President Xi, who has exerted greater central control and pressed a state-driven economic policy focused on technological autonomy and strategic industries.
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who → stand → autonomy
In a 40-minute speech on Monday, Xi called on the Communist Party to carry forward Jiang's legacy, presenting the current leadership as the continuation of his political and ideological project.
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Xi → call → project
"On the new journey ahead, we must heighten our sense of vigilance against potential dangers," he said during Monday's event.
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he → heighten → event
"With an indomitable fighting spirit and superb skill in struggle," we must "proactively meet the major tests posed by high winds and rushing waters, or even by raging storms," he added.
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he → meet → storms
He also praised Jiang's crackdown on a reformist Shanghai newspaper in 1989 after it voiced support for the pro-democracy demonstrations that culminated in the bloody Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing.
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that → praise → Beijing
"Xi is committed to the great renaissance of the Chinese nation," says Kerry Brown, Professor of Chinese Studies and Director of the Law China Institute at King's College London.
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Brown → commit → London
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