Qian Liren
Encyclopedia
Qian Liren is a Chinese
politician, diplomat, and translator.
, Jiangsu
province, Qian had family origins in Jiaxing
, Zhejiang
province, and is a documented descendant of the kings of Wuyue
. After moving with his family to Shanghai
in the Second Sino-Japanese War
, Qian attended Saint John's University, Shanghai
, where he studied chemistry
.
student movement and became its leader in Shanghai, becoming president of the Shanghai Secondary Students Association and Secretary of the Shanghai Students Union. He joined the Communist Party of China
(CPC) in 1940, and became a member of the CPC Shanghai Committee.
After the establishment of the People's Republic of China
in 1949, Qian worked in the international affairs department of the Communist Youth League of China. He was its representative to the World Federation of Democratic Youth
in Budapest
, Hungary
, and became Secretary in the Federation secretariat. He was a member of the 8th Standing Committee of the CPC. His Youth League origins have led to Qian being classified as part of the "Youth League faction" of Hu Yaobang
. From the Youth League, he was promoted to head the external affairs office of the State Council
(1964-1965).
Purged during the Cultural Revolution
, Qian was re-appointed in 1974 as a member of the Standing Council of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and in 1978 was posted as China's first ambassador to UNESCO
. Returning to China from Paris
, he became the head of the CPC Central Committee's International Liaison Department. This position would conventionally lead to the post of Foreign Minister
. For Qian, however, his next posting as the head of the People's Daily
(1985-1989) spelled the effective end of his rise within the CPC. Qian was a member of the 12th and 13th CPC Central Committee (1985-1992).
, Qian was the head of the People's Daily
, the CPC's party newspaper. At the time, the Communist Party leadership was split between those advocating conciliation with the students and those advocating a hard-line crackdown. During the protests, the newspaper printed several stories which were later regarded by the government as less than fully critical of the students. In addition, both Qian and the Editor-in-Chief Tan Wenrui were accused of tolerating pro-student editors, who obliquely attacked the hardliners in their reporting. Specifically, Qian directly authorised a series of reports, titled "Xth day of Martial Law", which was said to mock the hardliners by exaggerating the frivolity in Beijing
while under martial law. Its reportage of international news was also said to satirise the hardliners in the CPC leadership.
In its June 4th Edition, the People's Daily made a series of editorial decisions which the government later condemned as oblique criticism of the crackdown. In the international news section, for example, the Gwangju Democratization Movement was reported with a headline, printed in bold type, of "Seoul
students go on hunger strike to protest government massacre and crackdown". The headline of a story on Poland
was "Warning: no-body should play with fire", with a tagline "Polish leaders say elections are a great experiment in reconciliation". A number of reports on "Convicted criminal becomes People's Representative", and "Judge perverts justice" were also included. A headline in the sports section was headed "the unconquerable man".
More serious, however, was the "People's Daily Extra incident". Some People's Daily employees under the leadership of editor Wu Xuecan organised the printing of an unauthorised "extra" edition, which re-printed student flyers and took the point of view of the student protestors. Only about 1000 copies were reportedly printed, all of which were distributed to the protesting students. The "extra" was a direct response to the "April 16 Editorial", an editorial written by hawkish CPC leaders and published in the People's Daily, and which took a hostile attitude to the students. Despite immediately printing a notice that disclaimed the Extra as unauthorised, both Qian and Tan Wenrui were removed from their posts in the purge at the People's Daily that followed.
He was a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
(1993-1998) and occasionally acted as its spokesperson. From 1995-1998 he was the head of its Foreign Affairs committee.
, English
, French
and several other European languages. He has rendered into Chinese the August Coup, Mikhail Gorbachev
's memoir of that event.
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
politician, diplomat, and translator.
Early life
Born in 1924 in ZhenjiangZhenjiang
Zhenjiang is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Jiangsu province in the eastern People's Republic of China . Sitting on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the west, Changzhou to the east, and Yangzhou across the river to the north.Once...
, Jiangsu
Jiangsu
' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
province, Qian had family origins in Jiaxing
Jiaxing
Jiaxing is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province of Eastern China. Lying on the Grand Canal of China, Jiaxing borders Hangzhou to the southwest, Huzhou to the west, Shanghai to the northeast, and the province of Jiangsu to the north....
, Zhejiang
Zhejiang
Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
province, and is a documented descendant of the kings of Wuyue
Wuyue
Kingdom of Wuyue , 907-978, was a small independent coastal kingdom founded during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms of Chinese history. It was ruled by the Qian family, which remains widespread in the kingdom's former territory.-Founding:...
. After moving with his family to Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
in the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, Qian attended Saint John's University, Shanghai
Saint John's University, Shanghai
St. John's University was an Anglican university located in Shanghai, China. Before the Chinese Civil War it was regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in Shanghai and China...
, where he studied chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
.
Early career
While in secondary school and university, Qian became involved with the anti-KuomintangKuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
student movement and became its leader in Shanghai, becoming president of the Shanghai Secondary Students Association and Secretary of the Shanghai Students Union. He joined the Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
(CPC) in 1940, and became a member of the CPC Shanghai Committee.
After the establishment of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
in 1949, Qian worked in the international affairs department of the Communist Youth League of China. He was its representative to the World Federation of Democratic Youth
World Federation of Democratic Youth
The World Federation of Democratic Youth is a progressive youth organization, recognized by the United Nations as an international youth non-governmental organization. WFDY describes itself as an "anti-imperialist, left-wing" organisation...
in Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, and became Secretary in the Federation secretariat. He was a member of the 8th Standing Committee of the CPC. His Youth League origins have led to Qian being classified as part of the "Youth League faction" of Hu Yaobang
Hu Yaobang
Hu Yaobang was a leader of the People's Republic of China who served as both Chairman and Party General Secretary. Hu joined the Chinese Communist Party in the 1930s, and rose to prominence as a comrade of Deng Xiaoping...
. From the Youth League, he was promoted to head the external affairs office of the State Council
State Council of the People's Republic of China
The State Council of the People's Republic of China , which is largely synonymous with the Central People's Government after 1954, is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the Premier and includes the heads of each governmental department and agency...
(1964-1965).
Purged during the Cultural Revolution
Cultural Revolution
The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, commonly known as the Cultural Revolution , was a socio-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 through 1976...
, Qian was re-appointed in 1974 as a member of the Standing Council of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, and in 1978 was posted as China's first ambassador to UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
. Returning to China from Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, he became the head of the CPC Central Committee's International Liaison Department. This position would conventionally lead to the post of Foreign Minister
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
. For Qian, however, his next posting as the head of the People's Daily
People's Daily
The People's Daily is a daily newspaper in the People's Republic of China. The paper is an organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China , published worldwide with a circulation of 3 to 4 million. In addition to its main Chinese-language edition, it has editions in English,...
(1985-1989) spelled the effective end of his rise within the CPC. Qian was a member of the 12th and 13th CPC Central Committee (1985-1992).
Tiananmen Square incident and dismissal
During the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, also known as the June Fourth Incident in Chinese , were a series of demonstrations in and near Tiananmen Square in Beijing in the People's Republic of China beginning on 15 April 1989...
, Qian was the head of the People's Daily
People's Daily
The People's Daily is a daily newspaper in the People's Republic of China. The paper is an organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China , published worldwide with a circulation of 3 to 4 million. In addition to its main Chinese-language edition, it has editions in English,...
, the CPC's party newspaper. At the time, the Communist Party leadership was split between those advocating conciliation with the students and those advocating a hard-line crackdown. During the protests, the newspaper printed several stories which were later regarded by the government as less than fully critical of the students. In addition, both Qian and the Editor-in-Chief Tan Wenrui were accused of tolerating pro-student editors, who obliquely attacked the hardliners in their reporting. Specifically, Qian directly authorised a series of reports, titled "Xth day of Martial Law", which was said to mock the hardliners by exaggerating the frivolity in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
while under martial law. Its reportage of international news was also said to satirise the hardliners in the CPC leadership.
In its June 4th Edition, the People's Daily made a series of editorial decisions which the government later condemned as oblique criticism of the crackdown. In the international news section, for example, the Gwangju Democratization Movement was reported with a headline, printed in bold type, of "Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
students go on hunger strike to protest government massacre and crackdown". The headline of a story on Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
was "Warning: no-body should play with fire", with a tagline "Polish leaders say elections are a great experiment in reconciliation". A number of reports on "Convicted criminal becomes People's Representative", and "Judge perverts justice" were also included. A headline in the sports section was headed "the unconquerable man".
More serious, however, was the "People's Daily Extra incident". Some People's Daily employees under the leadership of editor Wu Xuecan organised the printing of an unauthorised "extra" edition, which re-printed student flyers and took the point of view of the student protestors. Only about 1000 copies were reportedly printed, all of which were distributed to the protesting students. The "extra" was a direct response to the "April 16 Editorial", an editorial written by hawkish CPC leaders and published in the People's Daily, and which took a hostile attitude to the students. Despite immediately printing a notice that disclaimed the Extra as unauthorised, both Qian and Tan Wenrui were removed from their posts in the purge at the People's Daily that followed.
Later career
Subsequently, Qian did not hold another major government or party position. He was the Vice President of the quasi-official Chinese Association for International Understanding from 1995 to 2003, and acted as advisor to the organisation thereafter.He was a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference [], shortened as 人民政协, Rénmín Zhèngxié, i.e. "People's PCC"; or just 政协, Zhèngxié, i.e. "The PCC"), abbreviated CPPCC, is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China...
(1993-1998) and occasionally acted as its spokesperson. From 1995-1998 he was the head of its Foreign Affairs committee.
Works
Qian is fluent in ChineseChinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and several other European languages. He has rendered into Chinese the August Coup, Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
's memoir of that event.