news Jiang Zemin: Former Chinese president who came to power after Tiananmen protests dies aged 96 | World News

The former Chinese president Jiang Zemin, who came to power after the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests has died aged 96, state media has said.Mr Jiang was made general secretary of

the Chinese Communist Party in 1989 and went on to serve as president between 1993 and 2003. He died from leukemia and multiple organ failure on Wednesday afternoon in Shanghai.Mr

Jiang was made general secretary of the China's ruling party after the bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square.The former soap factory manager stepped down

as party chief in 2002, but remained head of the military for another year and remained an influential figure in Chinese politics. His death comes as China faces widespread

anti-lockdown protests across the country on a level of dissent likened to the pro-democracy movement centered on Beijing's Tiananmen Square in 1989.Under Mr Jiang, China saw

economic reform which led to a decade of explosive growth.The country weathered the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis and pulled in foreign investment after joining the World Trade

Organization in 2001 following 12 years of negotiation. Mr Jiang also secured the bid to host the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Image: Xi Jinping, left, and Jiang Zemin, right,

in 2017 'A beloved comrade' A letter to the Chinese people by the ruling Communist Party and government officials announcing Mr Jiang's death, described it as an "incalculable

loss".It read: "Comrade Jiang Zemin's death is an incalculable loss to our Party and our military and our people of all ethnic groups".He called him a "beloved comrade", an

outstanding leader of high prestige and a great Marxist.Mr Jiang also saw the return of Hong Kong to China in 1997 following the British handover after more than 150 years of

British rule. Image: Mr Jiang, left, and Prince Charles, right, at the Hong Kong handover ceremony in 1997 Crackdown on dissent at homeAlthough China was led out of isolation under

Mr Jiang's government, a crackdown on dissent at home continued.His successors have used his phrase "stability above all else" to justify intensive social controls.Human rights and

pro-democracy activists were jailed and a ban was placed on the meditation group Falun Gong, which was viewed as a threat to the ruling party's power.Read more:Tensions in Shanghai

remain 'very, very high'China protests could 'crack' Xi's dominanceMr Jiang also attempted to strengthen political ties outside China and traveled to the US to meet the then US

President Bill Clinton.He was also one of the few world leaders to meet former US President George W Bush at his ranch in Crawford, Texas in 2002.Mr Jiang was last seen in public