Grand tribute, sombre farewell: How China remembered Jiang Zemin and Zhu Rongji over two days
China held back-to-back ceremonies to commemorate the birth centenary of former President Jiang Zemin and to mourn the death of former Premier Zhu Rongji. These events highlighted the legacies of two pivotal figures from China's era of economic reform.
Why it matters
The ceremonies serve as a symbolic reflection on China's political history and the transition of power within the Communist Party leadership.
China marked late President Jiang Zemin’s birth centenary on Monday (Aug 17) and bid farewell the next day to former Premier Zhu Rongji in two major ceremonies held just 24 hours apart.
Screengrabs of separate video footage by state broadcaster CCTV show the farewell ceremony for former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji at Beijing's Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery on Aug 18, 2026 (left), and the commemoration marking former Chinese President Jiang Zemin's birth centenary at the Great Hall of the People on Aug 17, 2026.
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