In less than four months since December 2023, at least 15 high-ranking generals in the Chinese military have died of illness, all of them were members of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Four Lieutenant Generals
Shen Chunian, 90, a lieutenant general and former deputy director of the CCP’s National Defense Science and Technology Industry Committee (NDSTIC), passed away on March 4. The official obituary praised him as an outstanding member of the CCP, a time-tested loyal communist fighter, and an outstanding leader of the CCP’s national defense science and technology industry.Mr. Shen attained the rank of major general in 1988 and was promoted to lieutenant general in 1994. He became deputy director of the NDSTIC in 1992 and president of the China Aerospace Foundation in 1996 after retiring from the military.
Shi Kexin, a lieutenant general and former deputy political commissar and party chief of the Disciplinary Inspection Committee of the Second Artillery, passed away on Feb. 14 due to illness.
Born in February 1928, he was a veteran of the Liaoshen and Pingjin battles and the Korean War. He had long served in the CCP’s Second Artillery, and had been director of the Political Department and political commissar of the 56th Base of the Second Artillery.
Qian Haihao, retired lieutenant general and deputy director of the Military Science Academy, passed away on Dec. 31, 2023, at the age of 80.
Mr. Qian was a researcher, director, and minister of the Academy of Military Science. He was awarded the rank of major general in 1995 and promoted to lieutenant general in 2003.
Wei Jinshan, a lieutenant general, a retired cadre with a full-general military rank, and a former political commissar of the Navy passed away on Dec. 8, 2023, due to an illness.
Six Major Generals
Zhang Lianyin, 79, a retired major general and former Hebei Military Region deputy commander, passed away on March 10 due to illness. Mr. Zhang was personally received by Mao Zedong as a representative of sincere learners of Maoist books in the Beijing Military Region.Shen Zhongxiang, 94, major general and former Deputy Commander of Jiangxi Military Region, passed away on Feb. 9 due to illness. He was the Chief of Staff of the Fuzhou Military Division and Commander of the Ji'an Military Division.
Liu Shaoxian, 94, major general, veteran soldier of the Eighth Route Army, and former political commissar of the Logistics Department of the Jinan Military Region, passed away on Jan. 11 due to illness. He went to Korea as a soldier in the 46th Army in 1952 to fight in the Korean War.
Jiang Deting, 94, major general and former Vice Admiral of the North Sea Fleet of the Navy, passed away on Jan. 6 due to illness.
Chen Jin, 69, major general and former political commissar of the Command College of Armed Police Forces, passed away due to illness on Jan. 3, 2024.
Renowned Military Doctor and Other PLA Cadres
Academician Sheng Zhiyong was also among the recently deceased. Born in 1920, he was an expert in burn surgery and the former vice president of the 304 Hospital, a military hospital.As a military surgeon, Mr. Sheng had participated in the Korean War and the Sino-Indian and Sino-Vietnamese border wars.
The official obituary praised him as one of the most important pioneers of burns and trauma medicine in China, who established the first intensive care unit in the entire army and the first liquid nitrogen preservation bank for allogeneic dermatology in China.
He has been a recipient of the State Council’s special allowance since 1991.
Three retired senior military officials are also on the list.
Liu Jinsheng, 83, former dean of the School of Logistics Engineering, died of illness on Jan. 20.
Hao Zhiping, 101, a former adviser to the Political Department of the General Staff, died of illness on Jan. 4.
Wang Zhenkui, 100, former advisor of the Engineering Department of the General Staff, passed away on Dec. 24, 2023, due to illness.
