Six high-ranking Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members reportedly died of illness between March 17 and 25.
These individuals include the provincial leaders of the rubber-stamp legislative conferences, a business mogul, an army commander, and the former deputy editor-in-chief of CCP mouthpiece People’s Daily.
Provincial Senior Official
According to an official release, Wang Jun—deputy director of the Department of Culture, Radio, Television, and Tourism of Zhejiang Province and a member of the provincial party committee—died on March 25 at the age of 52 due to illness. He was also deputy secretary-general of the Sichuan provincial government.‘Patriotic Businessman’
Li Sau Hung—chairman of the Campell Group, president of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Association, and executive director of the Hong Kong Federation of Literary and Art Circles—passed away on March 25 at the age of 70. According to official media, the watchmaking tycoon suffered a stroke and was hospitalized three weeks ago.Military Official
Liu Chengzhai, former deputy commander of the 38th Army, died on March 22 due to illness in Baoding, Hebei Province.‘Loyal’ Communists
Gao Shizhen, vice-chairwoman of the Seventh Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference of Tibet, passed away on March 20 due to illness. The official obituary described Ms. Gao as “an outstanding CCP member and a loyal fighter for communism.”Ms. Gao, born in December 1939, has served as the deputy director of the Women’s Federation of the Tibet Autonomous Region, deputy director of the Lhasa Municipal Revolutionary Committee, deputy secretary of the Lhasa Municipal Party Committee, deputy mayor of Lhasa, director of the Lhasa Municipal People’s Congress Standing Committee, and party chief of Lhasa.
Xu Jianchun, former deputy director of the Standing Committee of Shandong Provincial People’s Congress, passed away on March 17 from illness. She was “an excellent member of the Chinese Communist Party and a loyal soldier of communism,” the official eulogy said.
Former Chief of People’s Daily
Lu Chaoqi, former deputy editor-in-chief of the People’s Daily, died on March 19 in Beijing after a prolonged illness.Born in 1925, Mr. Lu actively participated in CCP student organizations while studying at Beijing University and later became a covert member of the Party. He served as a reporter for the People’s Daily, covering the war in North Korea. Over time, he advanced through various roles, including editor, commentator, and director of the editorial office, eventually becoming the deputy editor-in-chief.
During the Tiananmen Massacre in 1989, when Qian Liren, then president of People’s Daily, and Tan Wenrui, then editor-in-chief, both took sick leave, Mr. Lu took charge of the newspaper until he retired.