Censored Tribute to Former Chinese Premier Li Keqiang Fuels Speculation of CCP Infighting
Udumbara
A Suspicious Death
Li, who served two terms as premier under Chinese leader Xi Jinping, died unexpectedly on Oct. 27, 2023, from what the regime claimed was a sudden heart attack while visiting Shanghai. At 68, he was the youngest former premier to die since the founding of the communist regime. His abrupt death, just months after retiring from public office, raised immediate suspicion, given previous reports of political rifts between Li and Xi.During his tenure, Li made headlines in 2020 when he publicly acknowledged that 600 million Chinese people were living on a monthly income of 1,000 yuan ($140), which was a candid remark seen by some as undermining Xi’s claims of eradicating extreme poverty. China watchers have also noted a growing distance between the two leaders in their final public appearances.
A Memorial, Then a Muzzle
On July 3, the People’s Daily memorial piece for Li was written by the Institute of Party History and Literature, a body directly under the CCP Central Committee, praising Li for being hardworking, loyal to the Party, and supportive of Xi’s leadership even after his retirement. The article framed the tribute as being “in accordance with regulations” for commemorating deceased leaders.A Subtle Power Play?
Notably, the memorial article’s author, Qu Qingshan, is the current head of the Institute of Party History and Literature and a member of the CCP’s powerful Central Committee. Qu has a track record of penning essays that seemingly veer off-message from Xi’s political line.In a 2021 People’s Daily article, he praised former CCP leader Deng Xiaoping and the economic reforms initiated by other former leaders while conspicuously omitting Xi’s name. Qu’s omission may have been a veiled criticism of Xi’s retreat from market-oriented reform and a signal of dissatisfaction within the Party.
The latest article’s strange deletion may reflect renewed tensions ahead of two major upcoming political events in China: the annual Beidaihe Meeting and the much-anticipated Fourth Plenum of the 20th Central Committee.
Public Grief and Official Control
Li’s death in 2023 sparked an unusual wave of public mourning in his hometown of Hefei, Anhui Province. Crowds spontaneously laid thousands of flowers outside his former residence. The police quickly moved to clear the area.During last year’s Qingming Festival, a traditional Chinese holiday for honoring the dead, Chinese netizens reported that the regime deployed a heavy police presence around Li’s old home, deterring mourners from even taking photos.
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Signs of Brewing Political Upheaval
On June 26, freelance writer Du Zheng wrote in Taiwan’s Up Media that the leading theory in Beijing is that autumn may be a season of change as the CCP’s Fourth Plenum approaches. He pointed to whistleblowers allegedly from the CCP’s military leadership, saying that the political atmosphere in Beijing had become “highly abnormal” without further elaboration.It is nearly impossible to verify such claims due to the CCP’s total control and censorship of state media. Nevertheless, China watchers use such indicators to analyze the internal power struggles within the CCP.
Still, Cai noted something striking. That is, even in remembering a deceased leader, the People’s Daily could not resist politicizing the moment. The article concluded by calling on the public to “more closely unite around the Party Central Committee with Xi Jinping at its core,” effectively using Li’s death as a rallying cry to consolidate support behind Xi’s leadership.
