present at the meeting were Yang Shangkun, Li Peng, Qiao Shi, Yao Yilin, Wan Li, Li Xiannian, Peng Zhen, Wang Zhen, Bo Yibo and leading members of the Central Military Commission.
9.
A leadership reshuffle is imminent. A plenum of the Party Central Committee, originally scheduled for March may be held any day. Qiao Shi appears to be a likely successor to Zhao Ziyang. Hu Qili is rumoured to have been stripped of his responsibilities for propaganda work and is likely to lose his Politburo seat (he is said to have voted with Zhao against the decision to impose Martial Law at a Politburo Standing Committee session on 20 May). The military too may be looking for some reward for their role in recent events in the leadership reshuffle. Military representation in the Politburo and Central Committee is at its lowest ever since the founding of the PRC. Shanghai Party Secretary Jiang Zemin and Tianjin Party Secretary Li Ruihuan have not been seen in their home territories since late May. One or both of them may be in line for promotion. Jiang Zemin spoke out very firmly in favour of hardline policies right from the start, and Tianjin was virtually free from any demonstrations.
June 1989
VC6AFB
Far Eastern Section Research Department
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