Li Keqiang
Li Keqiang 李克强 | |
|---|---|
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| 9th First Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China | |
| Assumed office 17 March 2008 | |
| Premier | Wen Jiabao |
| Preceded by | Wu Yi (Acting) |
| Member of the National People's Congress | |
| Assumed office 15 March 1993 | |
| Constituency | Anhui At-large (93–98) Henan At-large (98-08) Liaoning At-large (08-) |
| 11th Communist Party Committee Secretary of Liaoning | |
| In office December 2004 – October 2007 | |
| Deputy | Zhang Wenyue |
| Preceded by | Wen Shizhen |
| Succeeded by | Zhang Wenyue |
| 12th Communist Party Committee Secretary of Henan | |
| In office December 2002 – December 2004 | |
| Deputy | Li Chengyu |
| Preceded by | Chen Kuiyuan |
| Succeeded by | Xu Guangchun |
| First Secretary of the Communist Youth League of China | |
| In office May 1993 – June 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Song Defu |
| Succeeded by | Zhou Qiang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1 July 1955 Dingyuan, China |
| Political party | Communist Party of China |
| Spouse | Cheng Hong |
| Alma mater | Peking University |
| Signature | File:Li Keqiang sign.jpg |
| Li Keqiang | |||||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 李克強 | ||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 李克强 | ||||||||
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Li Keqiang (born 1 July 1955) is the Executive Vice-Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, the seventh ranked member of the Politburo Standing Committee, the People's Republic of China's de facto highest decision-making body. As Premier Wen Jiabao's top lieutenant, Li's official portfolio includes economic development, price controls, finance, climate change, and macroeconomic management.
Li rose through the ranks of the Communist Youth League. From 1998 to 2004, Li served as the Governor of Henan and the province's CPC party chief, and then the Liaoning party chief, an office that made him first-in-charge in that province. Li is speculated as the likely successor to Wen Jiabao as Premier in the "fifth generation" (Xi-Li Administration) of CPC leadership.
Biography
Early life
Li Keqiang was born in Dingyuan County, Anhui on 1 July 1955. His father was a local official in Anhui. Li graduated from high school in 1974, during the Cultural Revolution, and was sent for rural labour in Fengyang County, Anhui, where he eventually joined the Communist Party of China and made his way to becoming the party head of the local production team. He was awarded with the honour of Outstanding Individual in the Study of Mao Zedong Thought during this time.[1]
He refused his father's offer of grooming him for the local county's party leadership and entered the School of Law at Peking University, where he received his LLB and became the President of the University's Student Council. He would go on to acquire a PhD in Economics. In 1980 he became the Communist Youth League Secretary at Peking University. He entered the top leadership of the Communist Youth League (CYL) in 1982 as a member of its Secretariat, and has worked closely with current General Secretary Hu Jintao, who also rose through the ranks of the CYL, ever since. Li became the organization's General Secretary in 1993, and served until 1998. He is a representative member of the first generation to have risen from the CYL leadership.
Provincial tenures
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Li became China's youngest governor when appointed to the position of Governor of Henan, one of China's most populous provinces, in June 1998, at the age of 43. Knowing the complicated situation Henan was in, and the issues associated with networking in the province, Li consciously left his family in Beijing to head to Zhengzhou alone. In addition, according to provincial government officials working with him at the time, Li refused to participate in any banquets or large fancy events not related to government activities.[2] During his time as governor a public sense of his ‘bad luck’ grew due to the occurrence of three major fires in the province.[3]
He is known to be outspoken, and led economic development in the central province, transforming the poor inland region into an attractive area for investment. Li did not waste time pursuing superficial projects, but rather trekked all regions of Henan trying to search for a comprehensive solution to the province's growing problems. Henan jumped in national GDP rankings from 28th in the early 1990s to 18th in 2004, when Li left Henan. However,he was unable to control the widespread of AIDS in the province during his governing, which has been proved to be disastrous.
He was transferred to work as the CPC Committee Secretary in Liaoning in December 2004. In Liaoning he is known for the "Five-points to one Line" project, where he linked up Dalian and Dandong, as well as a series of other ports into a comprehensive network.
National politics
Predictions he would eventually advance to the national level at the 17th Party Congress proved correct when he was elected to the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) in October 2007. He was succeeded in his provincial post by Governor Zhang Wenyue. Li has been touted as a possible successor to Hu Jintao, whose second term as General Secretary, expected to be his last, will end in 2012. At the 2008 National People's Congress, he was elected Vice-Premier, first in rank. This position makes it seem more likely that he will succeed Premier Wen Jiabao. As a result of this it is considered that he has lost out to Xi Jinping in the internal power struggle.[3]
Since his ascendancy to the PSC, Li has taken on the most important portfolios in the Chinese government, ostensibly being groomed for his upcoming premiership. Li's first major appearance internationally was at the 2010 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The event was seen as an "acid test" for Li, whereby he succinctly presented China's long-term vision for development in front of world business and political leaders.[4] In particular, Li briefed the WEF on China's commitment to sustainable development, green energy, decrease the income gap, and the modernization of key strategic industries.[4] While reiterating China's commitment to peaceful development and its focus in increasing domestic demand in the face of external pressures during the global financial crisis, Li also warned against protectionism, saying "opening up can be both bilateral and multilateral... in this sense, one plus one is more often than not bigger than two." He also touched upon the importance of international development, and international financial reform. He called for a global governance structure that was "more reflective of the changes in the global political and economic landscape."[5]
In February 2010, Li gave a speech to ministerial and provincial-level leaders about the importance of changing the economic structure of the country to be better poised for future growth. The speech was published with minor omissions in the 1 June issue of Qiushi, the Communist Party's political theory publication. Li said that China has come to a historical juncture whereby a change in the economic structure must take place for the country to continue its path of growth. Li particularly emphasized the need to boost domestic consumption, and said that urbanization is crucial in this phase.[6] Li also emphasized that China should be moving towards a more middle class-oriented society with an "olive"-shaped wealth distribution, with the majority of the country's population and wealth belonging to the middle class.[7]
He has also reiterated the importance of industrialization, urbanization and agricultural modernization in China in order to improve its competitiveness, food security, energy security, affordable housing and healthcare.[8]
In August 2011, Li went on an official visit to Hong Kong, including a trip to the University of Hong Kong. The political sensitivities and heightened security surrounding the event resulted in the Hong Kong 818 incident, an event that caused controversy in the territory.
Personal life
Li is married to Cheng Hong, a professor at Capital University of Economics and Business in Beijing. His father-in-law was once the vice-secretary of the Communist Youth League Central Committee.[9]
References
- ^ 《多维月刊》：李克强出身非平民，成长靠恩师（2）
- ^ Duowei: Li Keqiang helps Henan fight off the poverty
- ^ a b Power Players: Li Keqiang
- ^ a b Maidment, Paul (28 January 2010). "China's Li Delivers A Polished Future". Forbes.
- ^ Li, Keqiang. "Davos Annual Meeting 2010 – Special Address by Li Keqiang". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
- ^ Li, Keqiang. "Questions Concerning Changes to China's Economic Structure (关于调整经济结构促进持续发展的几个问题)". Qiushi. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
- ^ http://china.globaltimes.cn/society/2010-06/538531.html
- ^ Xinhua News Agency (11 October 2010). "China's vice premier urges accelerating industrialization, urbanization". English.news.cn. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
- ^ [Duowei Monthly: Li Keqiang's Wife and In-laws. http://www.dwnews.com/gb/MainNews/Forums/BackStage/2008_11_20_16_59_35_980.html]
External links
- 中国政治明星李克强甩掉河南“穷帽子” Template:Zh icon
- A Louie & Associates Articles: President Hu's Top 4 Aides (2007)
- 胡錦濤愛將李克強的仕途和足跡 Template:Zh icon
- 李克强出身非平民，成长靠恩师 Template:Zh icon
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