Tan Li (; born October 1955) is a former Chinese politician who spent most of his career in Sichuan and Hainan provinces. Tan served in prominent municipal posts in Sichuan, first as
Communist Party Secretary of
Guang'an
Guang'an () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Sichuan province. It is most famous as the birthplace of China's former paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. Guang'an lies between the hills of central Sichuan and the gorges area of the east.Guang'an ...
, then Party Secretary of
Mianyang. He was subsequently transferred to take charge of party propaganda in
Hainan Province
Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...
, then became Vice Governor of Hainan beginning in 2010.
In 2014, Tan was subject to a corruption investigation by the Communist Party's
internal disciplinary body. His Hainan colleague
Ji Wenlin
Ji Wenlin (; born July 1966) is a former Chinese politician. He was investigated by the Chinese Communist Party's anti-graft agency in February 2014. Previously he served as the Mayor of Haikou and the vice-Governor of Hainan. He once worked as ...
was also implicated with corruption. Tan was removed from office in July 2014. He has been linked to disgraced security tsar
Zhou Yongkang.
Biography
Early life
Tan was born and raised in
Chongqing
Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...
, where he graduated from
Chongqing Normal University Chongqing Normal University (Simplified Chinese: 重庆师范大学) is a major public research university in Chongqing, China. Founded in 1954 as East Sichuan Normal School, it is one of the institutions of higher learning in the People's Republic ...
.
During the
Down to the Countryside Movement, Tan worked as a
sent-down youth in
Changning County,
Sichuan
Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
. After the resumption of university entrance examination, Tan was admitted to
Chongqing Normal University Chongqing Normal University (Simplified Chinese: 重庆师范大学) is a major public research university in Chongqing, China. Founded in 1954 as East Sichuan Normal School, it is one of the institutions of higher learning in the People's Republic ...
and received a degree on political history. After college, he was assigned to
Yibin department of education, and later a provincial party-run school. He taught administrative management. He was given the title of "professor" in December 1992.
In September 1995, Tan was appointed the Communist Party Secretary of
Pi County
Pidu District formerly known as Pi County or Pixian is one of 11 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, Southwest China. It was approved from the former Pi County by the State Council on Novembe ...
, a position he held until May 1998. He then worked as the head of the Chengdu propaganda department. In March 2001, Tan was transferred to
Guang'an
Guang'an () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Sichuan province. It is most famous as the birthplace of China's former paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. Guang'an lies between the hills of central Sichuan and the gorges area of the east.Guang'an ...
as the Party Secretary, then he was transferred laterally to serve as party chief in
Mianyang in December 2004, where he served until March 2009.
Mianyang, Sichuan earthquake
The
2008 Sichuan earthquake struck the province in May 2008. Mianyang was particularly hard hit. The region was given special attention by the central government; both General Secretary and President
Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao (born 21 December 1942) is a Chinese politician who served as the 16–17th general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 2002 to 2012, the 6th president of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from 2003 to 2013, an ...
as well as Premier
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 policy ...
visited the region in the aftermath of the earthquake. In a widely circulated photo, Tan was seen smiling in the entourage of the Premier. In a television broadcast, Tan was also seen smiling amid the debris. Tan's smiling during the most destructive earthquake to hit the country since 1976 generated significant criticism online; internet users dubbed him "Tan Xiaoxiao" (, literally "the laughing Tan") or the "Smiling Secretary" ().
Tan responded to his critics during a media interview, "I don't think people know the truth... behind that incident. The General Secretary and the Premier were both visiting, I was greeting them. I was happy to see them, of course I wanted to smile."
[ He also said that he faced immense stress coordinating the response to the earthquake, and that "as a public official, you need to withstand this stress rom the criticism otherwise it will affect the work of the earthquake rescue activities. I'm the party secretary, like any politician, criticism comes with the job.][
In the aftermath of the earthquake, Tan lived in a makeshift office, on the first floor, and slept on a sofa. '' Southern Weekend'' reported that Tan would scream and cry at night due to dealing with too much stress.][ Tan later received a medal of distinction from the central authorities for "exemplary work during the rescue efforts of the Sichuan earthquake." He was praised for the construction of permanent housing for locals in the aftermath of the earthquake, as well as the treatment of the water in a local lake which was affected by the earthquake.][
Tan's term in Mianyang has also been marred with rumours that his second wife, a television host, had business interests which benefitted from government contracts aimed at increasing green space in Mianyang.][ His wife was made an official in ]Beichuan County
Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County (; Qiang: Juda Rrmea nyujugvexueaji xae) is a county under the jurisdiction of Mianyang City in northern Sichuan province, China. It is located in an ethnically diverse mountainous region of Sichuan. Its Chinese n ...
, one of the places hardest hit by the earthquake, shortly after the earthquake struck. She then worked for the provincial Red Cross.[ A '' Caijing'' investigation also concluded that Tan took bribes from local businessman ]Liu Han
Liu Han (; 25 October 1965 – 9 February 2015) was a Chinese billionaire businessman, the former chairman of the conglomerate Hanlong Group, with interests in power generation and mining. His assets were officially valued at 40 billion yuan ( ...
(); Tan was said to have received several million yuan in gifts during the wedding reception of his daughter.[
]
Hainan
In March 2009, Tan was elevated to lead the Communist Party's provincial propaganda department in Hainan province. This was a promotion that elevated him from the prefecture level to a provincial-level leadership body. During a meeting of the Hainan government where Tan's transfer was announced, one of the provincial government leaders showered Tan with praise, remarking, "this marks a strengthening of talent in the Hainan provincial government." He was elected as Vice-Governor of Hainan in January 2010.
Downfall
On July 8, 2014, it was announced that Tan was undergoing investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Chinese Communist Party for "serious violations of laws and regulations", in a case that was tied to the corruption investigation of Ji Wenlin
Ji Wenlin (; born July 1966) is a former Chinese politician. He was investigated by the Chinese Communist Party's anti-graft agency in February 2014. Previously he served as the Mayor of Haikou and the vice-Governor of Hainan. He once worked as ...
, another provincial official in Hainan. According to state media, Tan's offenses included accepting bribes, extramarital relationships, and engaging in "lavish meals, karaoke, and other expensive pastimes." Both Tan Li and Ji Wenlin had at one point worked under then-Sichuan Party Secretary Zhou Yongkang.[ One day after state media announced the investigation into Zhou, Tan was removed from office.]
Tan was expelled from the Communist Party in September 2014.[ On October 13, 2016 , Tan was sentenced to life in prison for guilty of bribery in Guangzhou People's Intermediate Court.
]
Personal life
Tan was twice married. His second wife worked as a television host for Mianyang Television.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tan, Li
1955 births
Chinese Communist Party politicians from Chongqing
People's Republic of China politicians from Chongqing
Living people
Expelled members of the Chinese Communist Party
Chinese politicians convicted of corruption