Wan Li
Encyclopedia
Wan Li (born 1 December 1916) was during a long administrative career in the People's Republic of China
Vice Premier, National People's Congress
Chairman, and a member of the Communist Party of China
(CPC) Central Committee
, its Secretariat and its Politburo
. He was born in Shandong.
in 1936, and served in party administrative positions, many in Shandong
province, from county level on up. In 1937-38, Wan was CPC Secretary (i.e., head) of Dongping County, in 1938-40 Propaganda and Organization Department director in Taixi Prefecture, deputy head of propaganda for Western Shandong regional CPC committee in 1940, and Secretary of the party's 2nd, 7th and 8th Prefectural Committees in the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Border Area in 1940-47. In the last phases of the Civil War, he was Secretary-General of the Border Area committee (1947-49).
in 1949, Wan was named deputy director of the finance department of the Nanjing Municipality Military Control Committee, director of the Economic Department and Chief of the city Construction Bureau, all within a few months. He served as Deputy Director of the CCP South-west Military and Administrative Committee's Industrial Department (1949-52), where he would have encountered Deng Xiaoping
.
In 1952 Wan moved into national-level politics. He shortly became the Vice Minister of Architectural Engineering (1953) followed by the post of Minister of Urban Construction (1955). From 1958, he was a secretary of the Beijing
Municipality CPC Committee (under Peng Zhen
) and Vice Mayor of the city government.
, Wan was restored to his Beijing posts in 1973. He was named Minister of Railways in January 1975 (to April 1976) and 1st Vice Minister of Light Industry in 1977. In May of the same year, he took over Anhui
Province as CPC 1st Secretary and Chairman of the Revolutionary Committee (i.e., government).
In Anhui, Wan Li was responsible for the earliest post-Mao agrarian
reform. On his own authority, he instituted a contract responsibility system whereby farmers divided communal lands and assigned them to individual farmers. His six guidelines (the Anhui liu tiao) relaxed controls on trading as well, permitting farmers to sell surplus produce independently. Peasants were allowed to grow vegetables on 3/10th of a mu and did not have to pay taxes on wheat and oil-bearing plants grown on private plots.
After their initiative was supported by Wan Li, and later in Sichuan
province by Zhao Ziyang
, it became national policy. The Anhui agricultural reforms were heralded as brilliant innovations by the central government. Wan Li was immortalised in the folk saying "If you want to eat rice, look for Wan Li." (要吃米, 找万里)
. In April he was made Vice Premier to fellow agrarian reformer Zhao Ziyang
, and in August Wan was named Minister of the State Agricultural Commission. He was also made a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Congress in September of that year.
Wan Li became the Vice Premier in 1984 and the Chairman of the National People's Congress
in 1988. Wan backed Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang in arguing to spread the household land contract scheme nationwide in 1979-81. He also supported Zhao in curtailing the Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign in the mid-1980s.
After the January 1987 resignation of CPC General Secretary Hu Yaobang, Wan Li was named to the interim five- member party Politburo Standing Committee; he was confirmed in that role at the September 1987 13th National Party Congress. The appointment was opposed by party elder Bo Yibo
and others in the Chen Yun
faction such as Yao Yilin
. While resistance to Wan remaining on the PBSC had to yield to Deng Xiaoping
's wishes, the conservatives were able to block Wan's elevation to the State Presidency, a position handed to General Yang Shangkun
. As a compromise, Wan was named Chairman of the National People's Congress
.
He was on an official visit to Canada and the United States during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
, and made speeches sympathetic to the student movement. Some of the protestors planned a demonstration to welcome him back to Beijing in late May. But instead he returned to Shanghai, where he was met by Jiang Zemin
and others who tried to persuade him to oppose the protests. It's been suggested that he was temporarily put under house arrest. He expressed conditional support for the leadership on May 27th, suggesting that a tiny minority of the protestors were conspiring to overthrow the government. He kept his position until he retired in 1993.
In 2004, he called for more democratic decision-making procedures in China to improve the country's "imperfect" Socialist system and boost economic development. Along with 20 other retired Politburo members, they openly asked the Central Government to rehabilitate former General Secretary and Premier Zhao Ziyang
’s name and hold memorial services for him for his many important contributions to 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...
Vice Premier, National People's Congress
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress , abbreviated NPC , is the highest state body and the only legislative house in the People's Republic of China. The National People's Congress is held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China; with 2,987 members, it is the...
Chairman, and a member of 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) Central Committee
Central Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
, its Secretariat and its Politburo
Politburo
Politburo , literally "Political Bureau [of the Central Committee]," is the executive committee for a number of communist political parties.-Marxist-Leninist states:...
. He was born in Shandong.
Pre-1949
Wan Li joined the Communist Party of ChinaCommunist 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...
in 1936, and served in party administrative positions, many in Shandong
Shandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
province, from county level on up. In 1937-38, Wan was CPC Secretary (i.e., head) of Dongping County, in 1938-40 Propaganda and Organization Department director in Taixi Prefecture, deputy head of propaganda for Western Shandong regional CPC committee in 1940, and Secretary of the party's 2nd, 7th and 8th Prefectural Committees in the Hebei-Shandong-Henan Border Area in 1940-47. In the last phases of the Civil War, he was Secretary-General of the Border Area committee (1947-49).
Early Liberation years
After the establishment of the People's Republic of ChinaPeople'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, Wan was named deputy director of the finance department of the Nanjing Municipality Military Control Committee, director of the Economic Department and Chief of the city Construction Bureau, all within a few months. He served as Deputy Director of the CCP South-west Military and Administrative Committee's Industrial Department (1949-52), where he would have encountered Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
.
In 1952 Wan moved into national-level politics. He shortly became the Vice Minister of Architectural Engineering (1953) followed by the post of Minister of Urban Construction (1955). From 1958, he was a secretary of the 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...
Municipality CPC Committee (under Peng Zhen
Peng Zhen
Peng Zhen was a leading member of the Communist Party of China.-Biography:Born in Houma , Peng was originally named Fu Maogong....
) and Vice Mayor of the city government.
Post-Cultural Revolution
After being purged in the Cultural RevolutionCultural 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...
, Wan was restored to his Beijing posts in 1973. He was named Minister of Railways in January 1975 (to April 1976) and 1st Vice Minister of Light Industry in 1977. In May of the same year, he took over Anhui
Anhui
Anhui is a province in the People's Republic of China. Located in eastern China across the basins of the Yangtze River and the Huai River, it borders Jiangsu to the east, Zhejiang to the southeast, Jiangxi to the south, Hubei to the southwest, Henan to the northwest, and Shandong for a tiny...
Province as CPC 1st Secretary and Chairman of the Revolutionary Committee (i.e., government).
In Anhui, Wan Li was responsible for the earliest post-Mao agrarian
Agrarianism
Agrarianism has two common meanings. The first meaning refers to a social philosophy or political philosophy which values rural society as superior to urban society, the independent farmer as superior to the paid worker, and sees farming as a way of life that can shape the ideal social values...
reform. On his own authority, he instituted a contract responsibility system whereby farmers divided communal lands and assigned them to individual farmers. His six guidelines (the Anhui liu tiao) relaxed controls on trading as well, permitting farmers to sell surplus produce independently. Peasants were allowed to grow vegetables on 3/10th of a mu and did not have to pay taxes on wheat and oil-bearing plants grown on private plots.
After their initiative was supported by Wan Li, and later in Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
province by Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang was a high-ranking politician in the People's Republic of China . He was the third Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1980 to 1987, and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1987 to 1989....
, it became national policy. The Anhui agricultural reforms were heralded as brilliant innovations by the central government. Wan Li was immortalised in the folk saying "If you want to eat rice, look for Wan Li." (要吃米, 找万里)
National politics
Wan was elected to the 11th Central Committee in 1977, and to the CC Secretariat in February 1980, where he worked under General Secretary Hu YaobangHu 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...
. In April he was made Vice Premier to fellow agrarian reformer Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang was a high-ranking politician in the People's Republic of China . He was the third Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1980 to 1987, and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1987 to 1989....
, and in August Wan was named Minister of the State Agricultural Commission. He was also made a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Congress in September of that year.
Wan Li became the Vice Premier in 1984 and the Chairman of the National People's Congress
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress , abbreviated NPC , is the highest state body and the only legislative house in the People's Republic of China. The National People's Congress is held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China; with 2,987 members, it is the...
in 1988. Wan backed Hu Yaobang and Zhao Ziyang in arguing to spread the household land contract scheme nationwide in 1979-81. He also supported Zhao in curtailing the Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign in the mid-1980s.
After the January 1987 resignation of CPC General Secretary Hu Yaobang, Wan Li was named to the interim five- member party Politburo Standing Committee; he was confirmed in that role at the September 1987 13th National Party Congress. The appointment was opposed by party elder Bo Yibo
Bo Yibo
Bo Yibo was a Chinese politician and one of the Eight Immortals of the Communist Party of China....
and others in the Chen Yun
Chen Yun
Chen Yun was one of the most influential leaders of the People's Republic of China during the 1980s and 90s, and one of the top leaders of the Communist Party of China for almost its entire history. He was also known as Liao Chengyun ; it's unclear whether this was his original name or a pseudonym...
faction such as Yao Yilin
Yao Yilin
Yao Yilin was a deputy Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1983 to 1988, and the country's First Vice Premier from 1988 to 1993. He was born in Hong Kong in 1917, and spent his early years in Guichi, Chizhou, Anhui. Yao joined the Communist Party of China in 1935...
. While resistance to Wan remaining on the PBSC had to yield to Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping was a Chinese politician, statesman, and diplomat. As leader of the Communist Party of China, Deng was a reformer who led China towards a market economy...
's wishes, the conservatives were able to block Wan's elevation to the State Presidency, a position handed to General Yang Shangkun
Yang Shangkun
Yang Shangkun was President of the People's Republic of China from 1988 to 1993, and was permanent Vice-chair of the Central Military Commission...
. As a compromise, Wan was named Chairman of the National People's Congress
National People's Congress
The National People's Congress , abbreviated NPC , is the highest state body and the only legislative house in the People's Republic of China. The National People's Congress is held in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China; with 2,987 members, it is the...
.
He was on an official visit to Canada and the United States during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
Tiananmen 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...
, and made speeches sympathetic to the student movement. Some of the protestors planned a demonstration to welcome him back to Beijing in late May. But instead he returned to Shanghai, where he was met by Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin
Jiang Zemin is a former Chinese politician, who served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1989 to 2002, as President of the People's Republic of China from 1993 to 2003, and as Chairman of the Central Military Commission from 1989 to 2005...
and others who tried to persuade him to oppose the protests. It's been suggested that he was temporarily put under house arrest. He expressed conditional support for the leadership on May 27th, suggesting that a tiny minority of the protestors were conspiring to overthrow the government. He kept his position until he retired in 1993.
In 2004, he called for more democratic decision-making procedures in China to improve the country's "imperfect" Socialist system and boost economic development. Along with 20 other retired Politburo members, they openly asked the Central Government to rehabilitate former General Secretary and Premier Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang
Zhao Ziyang was a high-ranking politician in the People's Republic of China . He was the third Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1980 to 1987, and General Secretary of the Communist Party of China from 1987 to 1989....
’s name and hold memorial services for him for his many important contributions to China.