Former Chinese premier Zhu Rongji dies at 97

Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, a key figure in the country’s economic transformation during the 1990s, has died at the age of 97.

BEIJING: Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji, a key figure in the country’s economic transformation during the 1990s, has died at the age of 97.

Zhu was known for his direct speaking style and his strong support for economic reform. His tenure was marked by major changes aimed at restructuring China’s state-dominated economy and opening it further to global markets.

He served as China’s vice premier from 1991 to 1998 before becoming premier, a position he held until early 2003.

Zhu’s political career began decades earlier. He graduated from Tsinghua University and joined the Communist Party in 1949.

During the Cultural Revolution, he was sent to work in the countryside and experienced a period of political hardship. He was later rehabilitated and gradually returned to senior government positions.

In 1987, Zhu became mayor of Shanghai. During his tenure, he helped guide the city through early economic reforms and development that eventually contributed to its emergence as a major international financial centre.

He moved to Beijing in 1991 after joining the central government. As vice premier and later premier, Zhu became closely associated with efforts to tackle economic overheating, inflation and financial instability.

His government introduced wide-ranging reforms to state-owned enterprises. Many inefficient state companies were closed, restructured or privatised, while large numbers of workers were laid off.

Zhu also strengthened the central government’s control over taxation and introduced reforms that encouraged private home ownership. Those changes played a major role in reshaping China’s housing market.

One of his most significant achievements was helping China secure membership of the World Trade Organization in 2001, following years of difficult negotiations. China formally joined the organisation in December that year.

The WTO accession accelerated China’s integration into the global economy and helped expand international trade and investment.

However, Zhu’s reform programme also had critics. Some observers argued that changes to agricultural policy, tax arrangements and state-owned enterprises created difficulties that later governments had to address.

Despite those criticisms, Zhu remained widely regarded as one of the most influential economic reformers in modern Chinese history.

His reputation for blunt remarks became particularly prominent after a collection of his speeches was published in 2011. The books contained unusually candid assessments of corruption, government debt, banking problems and weaknesses in public administration.

The speeches attracted significant public attention because they addressed many of the economic and social challenges facing China at the time.

Zhu warned about corruption, inequality and problems created by local officials. His comments continued to attract interest among reform-minded officials, academics and members of the public long after he left office.

His death marks the passing of a leader who played a central role in one of the most consequential periods of China’s economic development.

Zhu’s legacy is closely linked to the difficult reforms of the 1990s, when China moved towards a more market-oriented economy while maintaining the political control of the Communist Party.