On Wednesday, November 30, at around 12 noon local time, the former leader of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Zemin, died in his hometown of Shanghai.

He became the leader of China in 1989 after the bloody suppression of pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing's Tiananmen Square and remained in power until 2002.

He left a mark in the history of his country primarily thanks to economic reforms and a more liberal policy.

The death of the former leader was reported by Chinese state media, Reuters reports.

According to the official announcement, Jiang Zemin died of leukemia and multiple organ failure. 

"The death of Comrade Jiang Zemin is a huge loss for our party, army and people," reads the letter to the nation, which was signed by the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, the parliament, the government and the army.

The document describes Jiang as "an outstanding leader, outstanding Marxist, statesman, military strategist, diplomat and proven communist fighter."

There was nothing special about Jiang Zemin's appearance, he was only remembered for his glasses with thick dark frames.

This ordinary-looking man ruled over a fifth of humanity for thirteen years.

At the height of his power, he was president, general secretary of the party and chief of the army at the same time.

Jiang Zemin left the helm of the country with a reputation as an economic reformer who brought China into the World Trade Organization and allowed private entrepreneurship.

However, abroad, he remained labeled as a harsh authoritarian leader for whom economic development was more important than human rights.

Jiang assumed leadership of China after the bloody suppression of the Tiananmen Square uprising in Beijing in June 1989.

The election of the little-known mayor of Shanghai to the most powerful post of general secretary of the Communist Party in 1989 was unexpected and seen as temporary.

But he remained in power for more than ten years.

By Chinese standards, he was surprising with his liberal thinking, maneuverability and ability to negotiate.

He traveled a lot and achieved success in foreign policy.

Although he lacked charisma, he charmed with his command of the English language.

In 1998, Jiang said that democracy should be established in the world's most populous country within the next 50 years. 

"China will be transformed from scratch into a modern, powerful, democratic and civilized socialist state in the middle of the 21st century - you will be my age when this happens," the president, who was 72 years old at the time, announced to representatives of the Communist Youth of China .

Despite rumors that he wanted to cling to power, Jiang resigned as party chairman in 2002, handing the reins of power to Hu Jintao in China's first bloodless transfer of leadership since the 1949 revolution.

Jiang was last seen in public in October 2019, among other former leaders watching a military parade in Tiananmen Square marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

It will be recalled that Viktor Cherkesov, a long-time ally of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, former head of the Federal Drug Control Service (FKSN), died on Wednesday, November 9.

He was 72 years old, the cause of death is unknown.

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