Han Zheng

Han Zheng (Chinese: 韩正; pinyin: Hán Zhèng; born April 1954) is a Chinese politician serving as the Senior Vice Premier of the State Council and Politburo Standing Committee member of the Communist Party of China. He has also been leader of the Central Leading Group on Hong Kong and Macau Affairs since April 2018. Han served as Mayor of Shanghai between 2003 and 2012. In November 2012, he was promoted to become the Party Secretary of Shanghai, the top political post in the city, and also gained a seat on the Party Politburo.[1] Han was once considered a member of the Shanghai clique, headed by former Party General Secretary Jiang Zemin.

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Han.

Han Zheng
韩正
11th First Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China
Incumbent
Assumed office 19 March 2018
Premier	Li Keqiang
Preceded by	Zhang Gaoli
Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai
In office 20 November 2012 – 29 October 2017
Deputy	Yang Xiong (mayor) Ying Yong (mayor)
General Secretary	Xi Jinping
Preceded by	Yu Zhengsheng
Succeeded by	Li Qiang
In office 24 September 2006 – 24 March 2007 (acting)
General Secretary	Hu Jintao
Preceded by	Chen Liangyu
Succeeded by	Xi Jinping
20th Mayor of Shanghai
In office 24 March 2003 – 26 December 2012
Preceded by	Chen Liangyu
Succeeded by	Yang Xiong
Personal details
Born	April 1954 (age 66) Shanghai, China
Political party	Communist Party of China (1979-present)
Spouse(s)	Wan Ming (m. 1984)
Children	1
Alma mater	East China Normal University, Fudan University
Leading Groups and Commissions 2018-: Leader, Central Leading Group on Hong Kong and Macau Affairs 2018–: Deputy Leader, Commission on Comprehensively Deepening Reforms

Han Zheng
"Han Zheng" in Simplified (top) and Traditional (bottom) Chinese characters
Simplified Chinese	韩正
Traditional Chinese	韓正
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Hán Zhèng IPA [xǎn ʈʂə̂ŋ]

Early career

He was born in Shanghai, but traces his ancestry to Cixi, in neighbouring Zhejiang province.[2] He began work as a labourer at a warehouse in the latter years of the Cultural Revolution. He joined the Communist Party of China in 1979. He then worked at a chemical equipment company in an administrative role. Beginning in 1986, Han began working as a senior administrator at the municipal chemical engineering college, then worked as party secretary at the Shanghai Rubber Shoe Factory. By 1988, Han oversaw the party organization at the Shanghai Greater China Rubber Shoe Factory, and was praised by then Shanghai mayor Zhu Rongji.[3]

In June 1990, Han officially entered the Communist Youth League organization of Shanghai, and would rise to become its deputy secretary in charge of day-to-day work, then elevated to secretary (head) in 1991. In November 1992 he was named governor of Luwan District. During his tenure in the district, Han spearheaded the Huaihai Road revitalization initiative, transforming the street to a glamorous shopping destination. Han also focused on fixing the ecology of the district and expanding its green spaces. He then obtained a master's degree from East China Normal University and earned the title of senior economist.[4]

In July 1995, Han was named deputy secretary-general of the Shanghai municipal government, during which he was in charge of a committee on the economy, the municipal planning commission, and the director of the office in charge of securities regulations. In December 1997, he was named a member of the municipal Party Standing Committee for the first time, entering sub-provincial ranks. In February 1998 he was named vice-mayor of Shanghai; in May 2002 he was named Deputy Party Secretary of Shanghai.[4]

Han joined the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China at the 16th Party Congress in 2002. In 2003 he was named the Mayor of Shanghai at age 48, the youngest Mayor the city has seen in fifty years. A vocal advocate of the Shanghai real estate boom, Han has a largely positive image with the Shanghai citizenry for his openness and transparency. However, because he served under Chen Liangyu, the CPC Shanghai Secretary at the time, Han supported many of Chen's policies, notably those favouring Shanghai's regional development, in contrast to a more balanced approach favoured by the national leadership.

Leading Shanghai

Han with the President of Brazil, Lula da Silva

On 25 September 2006, Han became the acting Party Committee Secretary of Shanghai after the dismissal of Chen Liangyu over corruption probes during the Shanghai pension scandal. With what were believed to be stern messages sent by Party general secretary Hu Jintao, Han led a municipal task force to crack down on the corruption in Shanghai, and has since then been believed to be a Hu loyalist. His tenure as the interim party secretary in Shanghai lasted a mere five months, when on 24 March 2007, Xi Jinping was 'parachuted' into the office of Shanghai Party Secretary from the same post in the neighbouring province of Zhejiang. Xi later became the top leader of the Communist Party. Han proved to be a 'political survivor' however, having served under party secretaries Chen Liangyu, Xi Jinping, and Yu Zhengsheng in the Mayor's office.

Han assumed the party secretary post in November 2012, shortly after the conclusion of the 18th Party Congress, and also gained a seat on the 18th Politburo of the Communist Party of China.

First Vice-Premier

Han was chosen to be a member of the 19th Politburo Standing Committee, China's top decision-making body, at the 1st Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on 25 October 2017.[5] In March 2018 the National People's Congress appointed him first-ranked Vice-Premier of the State Council. He succeeded as leader of the Central Leading Group on Hong Kong and Macau Affairs in April 2018.

References

1. 韩正辞去上海市市长职务 杨雄任上海市代市长. Eastday (in Chinese). 26 December 2012. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
2. 韩正同志简历 (in Chinese). Xinhua News Shanghai. 22 May 2012. Archived from the original on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2013.
3. Xu Yanyan (14 August 2013). "Archived copy" 韩正回忆朱镕基下工厂：第一句话就是批评 (in Chinese). Yicai. Archived from the original on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
4. "Biography of Han Zheng". China Vitae. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
5. Wen, Philip; Blanchard, Ben (24 October 2017). "China unveils new leadership line-up with no clear successor to Xi". Reuters. Retrieved 26 October 2017.

External links

• Xinhuanet announces Han's appointment
• CityMayors profile

Government offices
Preceded by Zhang Gaoli	First Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China 2018–present	Incumbent
Preceded by Chen Liangyu	Mayor of Shanghai 2003–2012	Succeeded by Yang Xiong
Party political offices
Preceded by Yu Zhengsheng	Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai 2012–2017	Succeeded by Li Qiang
Preceded by Chen Liangyu	Communist Party Secretary of Shanghai (Acting) 2006–2007	Succeeded by Xi Jinping