49 Facts About Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping was born on 15 June 1953 and is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and chairman of the Central Military Commission, and thus the paramount leader of China, since 2012.

Xi Jinping lived in a yaodong in the village of Liangjiahe, where he joined the CCP after several failed attempts and worked as the local party secretary.

Xi Jinping subsequently joined the Politburo Standing Committee of the CCP the same year and was the first-ranking secretary of the Central Secretariat in October 2007.

Xi Jinping officially received the title of leadership core from the CCP in 2016.

Xi's political ideas and principles, known as Xi Jinping Thought, have been incorporated into the party and national constitutions.

Xi Jinping was born on 15 June 1953 in Beijing, the third child of Xi Zhongxun and his second wife Qi Xin.

Xi Jinping became friends with Liu He, who attended Beijing No 101 School in the same district, and who later became China's vice premier and a close advisor to Xi after he became China's paramount leader.

Xi Jinping's father was later imprisoned in 1968 when Xi was aged 15.

Xi Jinping once recalled that he had to overcome "five hurdles", and the experience led him to feel affinity with the rural poor.

Xi Jinping was arrested during a crackdown on deserters from the countryside and sent to a work camp to dig ditches.

Xi Jinping later returned to the village, under the persuasion of his aunt Qi Yun and uncle Wei Zhenwu.

Xi Jinping worked as the party secretary of Liangjiahe, where he lived in a cave house.

Xi Jinping then spent a total of seven years in Yanchuan.

Xi Jinping persuaded the China Teleplay Production Center to set the filming base of Dream of the Red Mansions in Zhengding and secured 3.5 million yuan to build Rongguo Mansion, which significantly boosted the county's tourism industry, generating 17.61 million yuan in revenue that year.

Xi Jinping started serving as the head of a region after being appointed just as the secretary of Ningde in September 1988.

Xi Jinping concentrated on the development of Changle International Airport, the Min River Water Transfer Project, the Fuzhou Telecommunication Hub, and Fuzhou Port, among others.

Xi Jinping concentrated on attracting Taiwanese and foreign investment, establishing Southwest TPV Electronics and Southeast Automobile in Fuzhou, and fostering Fuyao Glass, Newland Digital Technology and other manufacturing firms.

In 1995, Xi Jinping was elevated to deputy secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and served as Governor of Fujian from 1999 to 2002, during which he presented the notion of "Megalopolises" and advocated for the inter-island growth strategy of Fuzhou and Xiamen, which motivated local officials to swiftly overcome the repercussions of the Yuanhua smuggling case and adopt a new development strategy.

Xi Jinping eventually took over as provincial Party Committee secretary after several months as acting governor, occupying a top provincial office for the first time in his career.

Xi Jinping pledged there would be no 'purges' during his administration, despite the fact many local officials were thought to have been implicated in the Chen Liangyu corruption scandal.

Xi Jinping was ranked above Li Keqiang, an indication that he was going to succeed Hu Jintao as China's next leader.

Xi Jinping was put in charge of the comprehensive preparations for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, as well as being the central government's leading figure in Hong Kong and Macau affairs.

Xi Jinping made his first foreign trip as vice president to North Korea, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Yemen from 17 to 25 June 2008.

Xi Jinping was reportedly at the helm of a top-level CCP committee dubbed the 6521 Project, which was charged with ensuring social stability during a series of politically sensitive anniversaries in 2009.

Xi Jinping visited Japan, South Korea, Cambodia, and Myanmar on his Asian trip from 14 to 22 December 2009.

Xi Jinping later visited the United States, Ireland and Turkey in February 2012.

Xi Jinping travelled in a large van with his colleagues rather than a fleet of limousines, and did not restrict traffic on the parts of the highway he travelled.

Xi Jinping received 2,952 for, one vote against, and three abstentions.

Xi Jinping replaced Hu Jintao, who retired after serving two terms.

Xi Jinping's administration has overseen more Internet restrictions imposed, and is described as being "stricter across the board" on speech than previous administrations.

Xi Jinping has centralised his power and created working groups with himself at the head to subvert government bureaucracy, making himself become the unmistakable central figure of the administration.

Xi Jinping criticized the cadres of the CYLC, saying that [these cadres] can't talk about science, literature and art, work or life [with young people].

Xi Jinping is sometimes called the "pilot at the helm".

Xi Jinping has overseen the relaxation of restrictions on foreign direct investment and increased cross-border holdings of stocks and bonds.

Xi Jinping's administration made it easier for banks to issue mortgages, increased foreign participation in the bond market, and increased the national currency renminbi's global role, helping it to join IMF's basket of special drawing right.

Xi Jinping's administration pursued a debt-deleveraging campaign, seeking to slow and cut the unsustainable amount of debt China has accrued during its growth.

Xi Jinping has abolished the four autonomous general departments of the PLA, replacing them with 15 agencies directly reporting to the CMC.

Xi Jinping has adopted a hawkish foreign policy posture called "wolf warrior diplomacy," while his foreign policy thoughts are collectively known as Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy.

Xi Jinping has pushed for the Greater Bay Area project, which aims to integrate Hong Kong, Macau, and nine other cities in Guangdong.

Xi Jinping presided over the 709 crackdown on 9 July 2015, which saw more than 200 lawyers, legal assistants and human rights activists being detained.

Xi Jinping's term has seen the arrest and imprisonment of activists such as Xu Zhiyong, as well as numerous others who identified with the New Citizens' Movement.

Xi Jinping inspected the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps and praised its "great progress" in reform and development.

Xi Jinping gave premier Li Keqiang some responsibility over the COVID-19 response, in what has been suggested by The Wall Street Journal was an attempt to potentially insulate himself from criticism if the response failed.

On 15 October 2014, Xi Jinping emulated the Yan'an Forum with his 'Speech at the Forum on Literature and Art.

Xi Jinping has called traditional culture the "soul" of the nation and the "foundation" of the CCP's culture.

In September 2017, the CCP Central Committee decided that Xi's political philosophies, generally referred to as "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era," would become part of the Party Constitution.

The concepts and context behind Xi Jinping Thought are elaborated in Xi's The Governance of China book series, published by the Foreign Languages Press for an international audience.

Xuexi Qiangguo, an app for teaching Xi Jinping Thought had become the most popular smartphone app in China in 2019, as the CCP launched a new campaign that calls on its cadres to immerse themselves in the political doctrine every day.

Xi Jinping outlined a three-stage plan for the national team: to qualify for another World Cup, to host a World Cup and to win a World Cup.