Song Ping (; born 30 April 1917) is a
Chinese Communist
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...
revolutionary and a retired high-ranking politician. He was a member of the
Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, which effectively rules China, and is considered the only living member of the
Second Generation of Chinese Leadership.
Biography
He rose through the ranks of the party to become First Party Secretary of
Gansu Province, and later Minister of Organization of CCP. Song was in charge of senior cadres' recommendation, candidacy and promotion.
During his time as Party Chief of Gansu, Song Ping became
mentor
Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
of two young protégés -
Hu Jintao and
Wen Jiabao
Wen Jiabao (born 15 September 1942) is a retired Chinese politician who served as the Premier of the State Council from 2003 to 2013. In his capacity as head of government, Wen was regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic polic ...
– who were to become the
General Secretary of the
Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Civil ...
and the
Premier of the Chinese
State Council, respectively.
In 1987, Song left the
Planning Commission to replace
Wei Jianxing
Wei Jianxing (; January 2, 1931 – August 7, 2015) was a senior leader in the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), most active during the 1980s and 1990s. He successively held a number of important offices, including member of the Politburo Standing C ...
as head of the
CCP Central Organization Department. Song announced a decision by the Chinese Communist Party to expel members of the communist party who were sympathetic to
pro-democracy demonstrations in the spring of 1989. After the
Tiananmen Square protests, Song became a member of
Politburo Standing Committee
The Politburo Standing Committee (PSC), officially the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is a committee consisting of the top leadership of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Histori ...
with
Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2004, and as pr ...
and
Li Ruihuan
Li Ruihuan (born September 17, 1934) is a Chinese retired politician. Li was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), China's top decision making body, between 1989 and 2002. Li served as Chairman of th ...
.
He stepped down as a member of the Politburo Standing Committee on 19 October 1992 after
14th Party Congress.
Song
turned 100 in April 2017. Considered instrumental in the rise of former CCP general secretary
Hu Jintao, he lately attended the
20th Party Congress at age 105.
References
1917 births
Living people
Chinese centenarians
Chinese Communist Party politicians from Shandong
Governors of Gansu
Members of the 13th Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
Men centenarians
People's Republic of China politicians from Shandong
Politicians from Rizhao
Tsinghua University alumni
State councillors of China
Xinhua News Agency people
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