Song Ping Explained

Song Ping
Order1:Head of the Organization Department of the Chinese Communist Party
Term Start1:June 1987
Term End1:December 1989
1Namedata1:Zhao Ziyang
Jiang Zemin
Predecessor1:Wei Jianxing
Successor1:Lu Feng
Office2:State Councilor of the People's Republic of China
Term Start2:June 1983
Term End2:April 1988
Premier2:Zhao Ziyang
Office3:5th Director of the State Planning Commission
Term Start3:June 1983
Term End3:June 1987
Premier3:Zhao Ziyang
Predecessor3:Yao Yilin
Successor3:Yao Yilin
Office4:Communist Party Secretary of Gansu
Term Start4:June 1977
Term End4:January 1981
Deputy4:Feng Jixin (Governor)
Predecessor4:Xian Henghan
Successor4:Feng Jixin
Office5:Governor of Gansu
Term Start5:June 1977
Term End5:December 1979
Predecessor5:Xian Henghan
Successor5:Feng Jixin
Birth Date:24 April 1917
Birth Place:Ju County, Shandong, China
Party:Chinese Communist Party
Children:Song Yichang (son)
Song Yichun (son)
Native Name Lang:zh

Song Ping (; born 24 April 1917)[1] is a Chinese Communist revolutionary and a retired high-ranking politician. He was a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. Song 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 of two young protégés – Hu Jintao[2] and Wen Jiabao – who were to become the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and the Premier of the Chinese State Council, respectively.[3]

In 1987, Song left the Planning Commission to replace Wei Jianxing as head of the CCP Central Organization Department.[4] 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.[5] After the Tiananmen Square protests, Song became a member of Politburo Standing Committee with Jiang Zemin and Li Ruihuan.

As a member of more conservative faction within the party, Song stepped down as a member of the Politburo Standing Committee along with another conservative faction member Yao Yilin on 19 October 1992 after 14th Party Congress as a result of Deng Xiaoping's action to put more reformists into PSC.[6]

Song turned 100 in 24 April 2017.[7] Considered instrumental in the rise of former CCP general secretary Hu Jintao, he lately attended the 20th Party Congress at age 105.[8]

Notes and References

  1. Book: 「说道」山东人. 中国社会出版社. 1995. 9787800887031. 周树兴. 李晓平. 宋平,1917年4月24日出生于山东省莒县。. 2016-02-06. 2020-06-04. https://web.archive.org/web/20200604183950/https://books.google.de/books?id=oX4FAQAAIAAJ&q=%22%E5%AE%8B%E5%B9%B3%22+1917&dq=%22%E5%AE%8B%E5%B9%B3%22+1917&hl=de&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi1r7TppOTKAhUFcQ8KHW5ACiYQ6AEIOTAE.
  2. Web site: Who's Hu? Meet this engineer-Prez. https://web.archive.org/web/20121006222214/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/whos-hu-meet-this-engineerprez/26594-2.html. dead. October 6, 2012. November 20, 2006. IBNLive. IBNLive.com. 28 March 2010.
  3. News: http://www.jamestown.org/programs/chinabrief/single/?tx_ttnews[tt_news=28482&tx_ttnews[backPid]=191&no_cache=1 Hu Jintao: The Bird that Keeps its Head Down]. Yao. Jin (pen name). November 21, 2001. China Brief (Volume: 1 Issue: 10). The Jamestown Foundation. 28 March 2010.
  4. News: Beijing shuffle points to growing Cabinet intrigues. Thomson. Robert. June 24, 1987. The Sydney Morning Herald. 18. 28 March 2010.
  5. News: Party to purge its ranks. The Sydney Morning Herald. 11. 28 March 2010.
  6. News: CHINESE SHAKE UP TOP PARTY GROUP; FREE MARKET GAINS. Kristof. Nicholas D.. October 20, 1992. New York Times. 28 March 2010.
  7. Web site: 中共元老宋平百岁诞辰:目前党内资格最老、退休最久常委. Chundan. Song. tsinghua.org.cn. 2017-04-24. 2022-09-30.
  8. News: Party elders attend CPC congress opening; former president Jiang Zemin absent | the Straits Times . The Straits Times . 16 October 2022 .