89 Facts About Zhou Yongkang

Zhou Yongkang was born on December 3,1942 and is a former senior leader of the Chinese Communist Party.

Zhou Yongkang was a member of the 17th Politburo Standing Committee, China's highest decision-making body, and served as the Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission between 2007 and 2012, making him one of the most powerful leaders in China.

In that position, Zhou oversaw China's security apparatus and law enforcement institutions, including courts, prosecution agencies, police forces, paramilitary forces, and intelligence organs.

Zhou Yongkang was convicted of corruption-related charges in 2014 and expelled from the CCP in the same year.

Zhou Yongkang rose through the ranks of the CCP via his involvement in the oil and gas industry, beginning as a technician at the Daqing Oil Field during the Cultural Revolution.

Zhou Yongkang led the China National Petroleum Corporation from 1996 to 1998 before serving as Minister of Land and Natural Resources until 1999.

Zhou Yongkang was a State Councillor of the State Council from 2003 to 2008 and a member of the Secretariat of the Central Committee.

Zhou Yongkang served as the Minister of Public Security from 2002 to 2007, before being promoted to the PSC.

In late 2013, Zhou Yongkang was placed under investigation for alleged abuse of power and corruption, a decision publicly announced by state media in July 2014.

On June 11,2015, Zhou Yongkang was convicted of bribery, abuse of power and the intentional disclosure of state secrets by the Intermediate Court in Tianjin.

Zhou Yongkang was born as Zhou Yongkang Yuangen in December 1942.

Zhou Yongkang is a native of Xiqiantou Village, Wuxi County, in Jiangsu province.

Zhou Yongkang took on the surname of his mother because his father, whose surname was Lu, was a "live-in son-in-law" of his maternal grandparents.

Zhou Yongkang's family was poor; his family made a living farming and fishing the Asian swamp eel.

Zhou Yongkang was sent to school with the financial assistance of his family friends.

In 1954, Zhou Yongkang was enrolled at one of the two top middle schools in the eastern Wuxi area.

Zhou Yongkang excelled at school, and was eventually accepted to enroll at the prestigious Suzhou High School, one of the most prominent secondary schools in the Jiangnan region.

Zhou Yongkang had good grades and was involved in extra-curricular activities, including the school's political ideology group as well as events promoting literacy.

Zhou Yongkang was told by the authorities to "wait for an assignment" while the political struggles wreaked havoc on China's universities.

Zhou Yongkang joined geological survey work in north-east China in 1967, assigned to become an intern technician at factory No 673 at the Daqing oil field.

In 1970, Zhou Yongkang was promoted to lead the geological survey division of a local department charged with carrying out an ambitious petroleum drilling initiative set out by the Party's top leadership.

In 1973, Zhou Yongkang was promoted to head the Geophysical Exploration Department of the Liaohe Petroleum Exploration Bureau, located in Panjin, Liaoning.

Zhou Yongkang was seen as a hard-working and emotionally mature presence to his colleagues; he did not drink or smoke and would reputedly talk unscripted for hours on end while keeping his colleagues engaged.

At Liaohe, Zhou Yongkang met Wang Shuhua, a factory worker from Hebei province, whom he later married.

Zhou Yongkang's work consisted mainly of leading teams to unexplored, barren territory to conduct site surveys to assess the potential for future oil drilling.

Zhou Yongkang was known to be great at maintaining good interpersonal relationships with his superiors and subordinates, and gained significant personal clout.

Zhou Yongkang owed much of his career growth to his mentors from the Beijing Institute of Petroleum, who were working in executive positions at the Liaohe oil fields at the time.

In 1983, with the director of the Liaohe Oil Field Management Bureau being transferred for a job in Beijing, Zhou Yongkang was promoted to manage day-to-day affairs of the oil field.

In 1985, Zhou Yongkang left Liaoning for Beijing to become the Deputy Minister of Petroleum Industry.

Zhou Yongkang became a member of the company's senior executive team and was named deputy general manager.

In March 1989, as part of the government's overall strategy to move oil production from east to west, Zhou Yongkang led an oil and gas exploration and survey team to begin work in the Tarim Basin in the Xinjiang region of far-west China, near the city of Korla.

Zhou Yongkang was particularly involved in the Sudan Nile petroleum project, including the construction of the Greater Nile Oil Pipeline, CNPC's first major project outside of China.

In October 1997, Zhou Yongkang gained a seat on the Central Committee of the Communist Party, a leadership assembly of some 200 top political figures of the party.

In March 1998, Zhou Yongkang was elevated to become Minister of Land and Resources in Premier Zhu Rongji's cabinet.

In 2000, Zhou Yongkang became Party Secretary of Sichuan, the province's top political office.

Zhou Yongkang spearheaded economic modernization policies and in particular focused on agricultural modernization.

Zhou Yongkang was known for his quick and efficient decision-making, significantly altering the traditionally lax culture of the province's civil service.

Zhou Yongkang opened a new computer chip factory near Chengdu shortly after Zhou left his post in Sichuan.

Zhou Yongkang focused on improving tourism resources, significantly revamping the Mount Emei scenic region to attract more visitors.

Zhou Yongkang improved public safety in the province, for example, by enacting policies that aimed to reduce accidents in the province's water lanes.

On October 20,2000, in the spirit of attracting investment for economic development, Zhou Yongkang hosted visiting Chinese and international dignitaries and businesspeople at the China Western Forum held in Chengdu.

Widely regarded as a rising political star, Zhou Yongkang was said to be a leading candidate for Vice-Premier or entry into the top ranks of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

Zhou Yongkang earned a series of powerful posts in the party and government within the span of a few months, including membership in the Politburo, State Councilor, Deputy Zhengfawei Secretary, First Political Commissar of the People's Armed Police, and Secretary of the party's Central Secretariat.

Zhou Yongkang's assuming the deputy secretary position at the Zhengfawei meant that his status in the Chinese domestic security system was second only to Politburo Standing Committee member Luo Gan.

Zhou Yongkang was the first Minister of Public Security to hold a Politburo seat since Mao's successor Hua Guofeng, a testament to the renewed importance of the domestic security portfolio.

Zhou Yongkang undertook significant reforms of the country's policing system, which not only faced external pressures from a deteriorating domestic security situation, but internal dissent due to stagnant wages and lack of resources.

Zhou Yongkang set out mandating the construction of new office buildings to serve as police headquarters and provided modern housing for officers.

Zhou Yongkang implemented a wide array of disciplinary regulations, including making offenses such as using firearms outside of work duties, drinking and driving, and gambling during work hours causes for dismissal.

Zhou Yongkang was said to have fired several hundred police officers for drinking problems.

Zhou Yongkang held high-profile "mass study sessions" in an attempt to indoctrinate officers politically on party policies.

Zhou Yongkang instituted a nationwide "professional training boot camp" intended to streamline police operations and teach officers about professional ethics, making it mandatory for rank-and-file officers to take "professional training" for half of their working day.

Zhou Yongkang began a national campaign for xinfang petitioners to "speak directly with the police chief", aimed at creating a more effective means to address petitioner grievances.

In 2007, Zhou Yongkang was transferred to fill the vacancy from Luo Gan, who retired from his leadership position as central Zhengfawei chief.

Zhou Yongkang headed the national weiwen task force, overseeing law enforcement, suppression of dissent, state surveillance, and combating separatist movements in Xinjiang and Tibet.

Zhou Yongkang served as China's 'high representative' in matters relating to North Korea, attending the Arirang Festival as a guest of Kim Jong-il before Kim died in 2011.

Bo, considered a political ally of Zhou Yongkang, was rumoured to be next-in-line to Zhou Yongkang's powerful position of Legal and Political Committee Secretary, and thus the Standing Committee.

Zhou Yongkang lauded Bo's heavy-handed approach to reduce crime in the city, and praised Bo's style of state-driven, populist "mass movements" which had some characteristics of a Maoist-style political campaign.

Unconfirmed reports surfaced on the UK based Sunday Times, citing Hong Kong magazine Frontline, that the paramilitary forces under Zhou Yongkang's disposal had narrowly avoided direct conflict with the 38th Army in the center of Beijing.

Outwardly, Zhou Yongkang appeared to be toeing the party line between March 2012 and his scheduled retirement in November.

On May 14,2012, the Financial Times reported that Zhou Yongkang had relinquished the operational control of the party's Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission to Minister of Public Security Meng Jianzhu due to his support for Bo Xilai, and had lost his right to select his successor when he retires from the Politburo Standing Committee in the fall of 2012.

The New York Times later reported that Zhou Yongkang's status remained unchanged.

Zhou Yongkang retired from Politburo Standing Committee after the 18th Party Congress on November 15,2012, and retired from Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission five days later, after which Meng Jianzhu succeeded Zhou's position.

Zhou Yongkang retired at the 18th Party Congress held in November 2012, an event which saw Xi Jinping, the current President of the People's Republic of China, ascend to become General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, China's paramount leader.

Zhou Yongkang's visit to Suzhou High School marked his final pilgrimage to his hometown.

At his visit to the China University of Petroleum campus, Zhou Yongkang publicly 'pledged his allegiance' to Xi Jinping, China's new leader, rallying students to unite behind Xi to pursue the "Chinese Dream".

The new party leadership under Xi reportedly began planning the crackdown on Zhou Yongkang beginning in 2012.

Discussions surrounding the Zhou Yongkang case took place in the summer of 2013.

Zhou Yongkang's case was unprecedented, as no corruption investigation had ever been initiated against a member of the elite Politburo Standing Committee.

Zhou Yongkang supposedly used his father's prominence to extort millions of dollars in protection fees from various businesses and organizations.

Zhou Yongkang was reportedly being held in confinement without visitation rights in a heavily guarded facility on a military base near Baotou, Inner Mongolia.

Zhou Yongkang was the first Politburo Standing Committee member to be expelled from the party since the fall of the Gang of Four in 1980 at the conclusion of the Cultural Revolution.

The Economist compared Zhou Yongkang's fall with earlier internecine struggles in the party and noted Xi's anti-corruption campaign had "apparent factional bias", quoting a study that no "Princelings" have been investigated in the anti-corruption campaign.

Duowei stated that Western media had a very poor grasp of what Xi was actually trying to achieve, and that Zhou Yongkang's downfall was, but a small element of a larger campaign by Xi Jinping to clean up the party, institutionalize power structures, and re-build the party's legitimacy.

Overseas Chinese media was rife with speculation about the 'treatment' Zhou Yongkang was to receive.

The official report on Zhou Yongkang's trial was brief, and stated that he had been convicted on all three charges.

The court decided that Zhou Yongkang could serve prison terms concurrently and amalgamated the sentences into one 'combined' life sentence.

State television showed Zhou Yongkang pleading guilty with a head of fully gray hair, in contrast to his combed jet black hair dye he was known for prior to his retirement.

In contrast to Bo, Zhou Yongkang did not appear to dispute his charges.

However, it was likely that Zhou Yongkang's trial was not open to the public as a result of the sensitivity of the subject matter and its political implications.

In June 2016, Zhou Yongkang Bin was found guilty of taking 222 million yuan in bribes and illegally trading in restricted commodities, and 350 million yuan of illicit gains were confiscated; Zhou Yongkang's wife, Jia Xiaoyue, was fined 1m yuan for bribe-taking.

Zhou Yongkang has two sons, Zhou Bin and Zhou Han, with his first wife, Wang Shuhua, whom he met while working in the oilfields of Liaoning province.

The couple had cordial relations while Zhou Yongkang was at the Liaohe oil field, but the marriage later deteriorated.

Zhou Yongkang was said to be a workaholic on the oil fields, often working into the morning hours and sleeping in his office.

In 2013, overseas Chinese news websites Mingjing and Boxun both reported that Zhou Yongkang had conspired with his secretary to kill Wang.

Indeed, the first official mention of Jia Xiaoye in her capacity as Zhou Yongkang's wife was during the latter's sentencing announcement in June 2015.

Zhou Yongkang's son, Zhou Yongkang Bin, born in 1972, was a prominent oil and gas executive who ostensibly used his father's connections to further his own business interests.

The younger Zhou Yongkang was the primary shareholder and Chairman of Beijing Zhongxu Yangguang Energy Technology Holdings Ltd.

Zhou Yongkang Bin was investigated, tried, and sentenced to 18 years in prison.

The younger Zhou Yongkang is married to Chinese-American Huang Wan, whom he met while studying oil and gas exploration in Texas.