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 {{China-politician-stub