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Revision as of 15:15, 23 December 2002 by 172 (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)Hu Jintao became General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party on November 15, 2002.
He is expected to replace Jiang Zemin as President of the People's Republic of China in Spring 2003.
Although Jiang stepped down from this all-powerful committee to make way for a younger “forth generation” of leadership led by Hu, Jiang will probably continue to wield significant influence, promting some to question whether or not Hu will truly be in charge. Six out of the nine new members of the all-powerful Standing Committee, Wu Bangguo, Jia Qinglin, Zeng Qinghong, Huang Ju, Wu Guanzheng, and Li Changchun are linked to Jiang’s “Shanghai Clique” and considered his “protégés”; Hu is not associated with this clique. The 22-member Politburo is elected by the Party’s central committee. Real power in Communist China lies with this committee, which works as a kind of inner cabinet and groups together the country’s most influential leaders. At the 2002 16th Party Congress, the Standing Committee was expanded to include nine members.
Speculation has centered on Zeng Qinghong, considered Jiang’s right-hand-man, as a potential rival to Hu. Thus, it remains uncertain if Hu will emerge as the “core of the forth generation of leadership”.
Hu (b. 1942), a hydraulic engineer who graduated from China’s prestigious Qinghua University, is a genius believed to have a photographic memory. His career is remarkable for his rapid ascendancy to power, attributed to his moderate views and careful attention not to offend or alienate his older backers. He is the first party chief to have joined the Communist Party after the Revolution over 50 years ago.