Former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin, who steered the country through a transformational era from the late 1980s and into the new millennium, died Wednesday at the age of 96, state news agency Xinhua said, IgbereTV reportsÂ
Jiang took power in the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and led the worldâs most populous nation towards its emergence as a powerhouse on the global stage.
âJiang Zemin passed away due to leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai at 12:13 p.m. on Nov. 30, 2022, at the age of 96, it was announced on Wednesday,â Xinhua reported.
Xinhua said the announcement of his death was made in a letter expressing âprofound griefâ at Jiangâs death, addressed to the whole Communist Party, military and Chinese people.
His death came after all medical treatments had failed, it said.
âComrade Jiang Zemin was an outstanding leader⌠a great Marxist, a great proletarian revolutionary, statesman, military strategist and diplomat, a long-tested communist fighter, and an outstanding leader of the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics,â Xinhua quoted the letter as saying.
Jiangâs death comes as China sees a flare-up of anti-lockdown protests that have morphed into calls for wider political freedoms â the most widespread since the 1989 pro-democracy rallies that were crushed the year Jiang took power.
âDuring the serious political turmoil in China in the spring and summer of 1989, Comrade Jiang Zemin supported and implemented the correct decision of the Party Central Committee to oppose unrest, defend the socialist state power and safeguard the fundamental interests of the people,â state broadcaster CCTV said on Wednesday
