Zhu Rongji Passes Away: What Political Messages Are Hidden in the Official Obituary

Dark clouds loom over Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. (Feng Li/Getty Images)

[People News] On August 12 at 6 PM, the party media Xinhua News Agency was authorized to release the obituary of former Politburo Standing Committee member and Premier Zhu Rongji. The obituary is presented with a high level of formality, starting with a joint announcement from the Central Committee of the Communist Party, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, the State Council, and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, fully conforming to the standards for obituaries of national leaders.

Overseas Reports Emerge Nearly 20 Hours Before Official Announcement

The full text of Zhu Rongji's obituary is nearly 2,000 words, featuring a complete structure, a rigorous narrative, and carefully chosen language, covering Zhu Rongji's early life, his governance in Shanghai, his roles as Vice Premier and Premier during reform, and his political stance after retirement in a cohesive manner. The official announcement specifies the time of death as 11:06 AM, with only a 7-hour interval between the announcement and the official time of death, indicating that the CCP authorities had a well-prepared plan regarding Zhu Rongji's passing, with historical data, relevant evaluations, family opinions, and top-level directives already in place.

On the X platform, a certain account leaked the news of Zhu Rongji's death nearly 20 hours prior to the official announcement. This account also disclosed that Zhu Rongji was featured in a CCTV interview discussing the implementation of the tax-sharing system in a documentary about Jiang Zemin that aired on the evening of the 12th.

From the official narrative, it is clear that the authorities likely had prior knowledge of Zhu Rongji's condition and impending death. In recent years, there have been numerous rumors about Zhu Rongji's critical health and passing. In 2025, there were widespread online rumors regarding his poor health and being 'under control.' This January, following the arrest of Zhang Youxia, news of Zhu Rongji's death suddenly surfaced from overseas.

Zhu Rongji is seen as a prominent figure among the elder reformists within the upper ranks of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and his health status serves as a direct reflection of the current political landscape, echoing the power struggles under Xi Jinping's regime. Consequently, he has garnered considerable attention from the public, leading to various speculations and analyses.

High-profile positioning, avoiding factional labels

The obituary provides a highly favorable assessment of Zhu Rongji's life, effectively serving as a positive final judgment. However, as a senior official within the CCP system, Zhu, despite being somewhat of an outsider, cannot escape the tragic fate of being exploited by the Party. His historical contributions have been starkly integrated into Xi Jinping's current power narrative, becoming part of the political strategies employed by Xi's administration.

In the obituary, Zhu Rongji is described as an "outstanding proletarian revolutionary, politician, and an exceptional leader of the Party and the state," as well as a "loyal communist warrior who has stood the test of time." This represents the highest standard of evaluation from the upper echelons in recent years, akin to the language used in the obituaries of other national leaders such as Wu Bangguo and Li Keqiang.

While the obituary frequently references the term "reform and opening up," it intentionally avoids the factional labels often used by outsiders, such as "reformist," "market-oriented," and "technocrat." Instead, it positions Zhu Rongji as a key advocate for the development of the socialist market economy with Chinese characteristics. This approach not only acknowledges Zhu's significant role during the pivotal period of economic transition but also subtly encapsulates his personal achievements within the framework of "loyalty" and "the historical continuity of the Party." The tone of the obituary emphasizes Zhu Rongji's political reliability, effectively shielding it from any factional labels that could provoke associations.

The obituary reflects a distinct political bias in its depiction of Zhu Rongji's personal style, describing him as someone who 'dared to speak the truth, was unafraid of offending others, and did not engage in favoritism.' This characterization seems to resonate with the public's memory of his forthrightness, yet it is framed within the Communist Party of China's (CPC) specific political context of 'public servants' and 'responsibility,' which intentionally diminishes Zhu Rongji's independent charisma and political ideology.

In April 2011, during a visit to Tsinghua University, Zhu Rongji publicly criticized CCTV's 'News Broadcast.' He remarked that he watched the program every day after retirement, and as the students cheered, he added, 'I watch to see what nonsense they are talking about.' After a brief moment of stunned silence, the students burst into enthusiastic applause.

This widely shared anecdote about Zhu Rongji is a clear taboo in the CPC's propaganda. Furthermore, the obituary fails to mention the 20 years during which Zhu Rongji was wrongly labeled a rightist, merely summarizing it with a single line: 'Sent to the National Development and Reform Commission's labor camp for re-education.'

Zhu Rongji's persona as a 'historical specimen of economic reform' effectively addresses land finance issues.

The obituary allocates considerable space to detailing Zhu Rongji's role in advancing economic reform and his actual contributions, including comprehensive discussions on the tax-sharing system, financial reform, state-owned enterprise reform, housing monetization, and negotiations for China's accession to the WTO.

The tax-sharing system is clearly recognized as a 'reasonable fiscal system based on the division of responsibilities between the central and local governments.' Additionally, the financial system and the establishment of a modern enterprise system for state-owned enterprises have also been acknowledged. In addressing the most contentious issue of state-owned enterprise reform and the significant layoffs of workers, the text specifically states, 'making every effort to promote the re-employment of laid-off workers and strengthen the construction of the social security system.' This not only affirms the necessity of reform but also delicately responds to the painful collective memory of the laid-off workers.

Regarding Zhu Rongji's efforts in housing reform, the obituary highlights that 'he advanced housing system reform, gradually implemented the monetization of housing allocation, and established and improved a multi-level urban housing supply system centered on affordable housing.' It is precisely because of the housing reform and the tax-sharing system that the subsequent local land finance and real estate bubble developed. While the obituary acknowledges the initiation of housing monetization, it carefully distances this from the later issues of land finance and soaring housing prices, and it is particularly cautious not to allow any association with the sensitive issues surrounding the current real estate collapse, effectively performing a careful surgical separation.

These narrative texts hold significant meaning. After providing Zhu Rongji with a high historical evaluation, they quickly redirect the implied logic to serve the current power structure, portraying Zhu Rongji as a historical architect of institutions with a certain temporal and spatial distance from the present era, thus eliminating any potential conflict with Xi Jinping's current political direction.

Subtly referencing Deng, openly praising Jiang, and unifying under Xi.

In discussing Jiang Zemin, the obituary completely omits any mention of the fundamental political discord between him and Zhu Rongji, instead emphasizing that it is 'under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Jiang Zemin at its core.' In reference to Deng Xiaoping, the obituary highlights that Zhu Rongji 'actively promoted and implemented the spirit of the Southern Tour talks.' As a faithful executor and strong advocate of Deng Xiaoping's reform agenda, Zhu Rongji derived the legitimacy of his reform efforts from Deng Xiaoping's 1992 Southern Tour speech. This was also the period when Jiang Zemin was firmly committed to a planned economy, which forced Deng Xiaoping to embark on the Southern Tour and issue a warning to Jiang Zemin that 'those who do not reform will step down.' Nevertheless, the obituary intentionally downplays Deng Xiaoping's contributions while elevating Jiang Zemin's status.

The obituary concludes with the statement: 'We must transform our grief into strength, learn from his revolutionary spirit, noble character, and excellent style, and unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core.' It stresses the importance of deeply understanding the decisive significance of the 'Two Establishments,' enhancing the 'Four Consciousnesses,' strengthening the 'Four Confidences,' and achieving the 'Two Safeguards.' This marks a forced political transition and loyalty allegiance from the Jiang Zemin era to the current Xi Jinping core, while also utilizing Zhu Rongji's public image of 'iron-fisted rectification' to support the existing anti-corruption narrative.

This reveals the underlying power struggle logic behind the obituary.

On the 17th of this month, the Chinese Communist Party will hold a grand centenary memorial for Jiang Zemin. The memorial activities for Zhu Rongji and Jiang Zemin will act as a barometer for assessing the current situation of political elders. The presence of figures such as Hu Jintao, Wen Jiabao, Li Ruihuan, and Wang Qishan is directly tied to the power dynamics leading up to the 21st National Congress. Although rumors about Hu Jintao's entire family dying from food poisoning have been confirmed as false, they highlight the top leadership's heightened vigilance and apprehension towards political elders.

Rumors suggest that Wang Qishan is under house arrest, and the secretaries of Wen Jiabao and Li Ruihuan have recently lost their positions. These signals indicate that the current leadership is actively purging and isolating individuals who are still perceived by the outside world as potential checks and balances due to their political experience, status, and influence. All signs point to a strategic maneuver aimed at clearing obstacles for Xi Jinping's fourth term.

The real significance of this obituary lies not in acknowledging Zhu Rongji's economic contributions, but in how it fully integrates a once-powerful prime minister into Xi Jinping's narrative of political loyalty and obedience. It not only consolidates the achievements of reform but also eliminates any potential adverse interpretations against the authorities through precise historical framing and political statements. From the perspective of internal power struggles, the presence or absence of political elders, subtle differences in the memorial's specifications, and the official commentary on terms like 'reform and opening up' and 'market economy' will all serve as indicators of the power dynamics leading up to the 21st National Congress.

(First published by the People News)△