According to reports, China will commemorate the late state leader Jiang Zemin’s 100th birthday this August with the highest level of ceremony.
Hong Kong media reported on the 16th that an announcement at the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall on Beijing’s Tiananmen Square recently stated: “Due to practical needs, the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall will undergo internal maintenance and renovations from March 16 to August 31, 2026, and will be temporarily closed to the public during this period.”
The report said that this August, there will be a grand commemorative conference at the memorial hall—namely, the “Commemoration Conference for the 100th Anniversary of Comrade Jiang Zemin’s Birth”; Jiang Zemin was born on August 17, 1926, and passed away in November 2022.
The report pointed out that Jiang Zemin governed for 13 years (from 1989 to 2002), is regarded as “the core of the third generation leadership collective of the Chinese Communist Party,” and was bestowed titles such as “an outstanding leader widely recognized by the entire Party, the entire military, and the people of all ethnic groups across the country, a great Marxist, a great proletarian revolutionary, statesman, military strategist, and diplomat.” The level of his funeral was comparable to that of senior CCP elder Deng Xiaoping.
It is noted that Beijing, Jiang Zemin’s hometown Jiangsu, and Shanghai where he once governed, are preparing commemorative activities.
The report said that since the establishment of new China, the centennial birthdays of leaders generally involve only a forum, but only six people have had the highest-level commemorative conference: Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Liu Shaoqi, Zhu De, Deng Xiaoping, and Chen Yun, and Jiang Zemin would be the 7th.
According to the highest standard, at that time the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, the State Council, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, and the Central Military Commission will hold a grand commemoration conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, with the top leader delivering a speech and at least 5,000 representatives from all sectors of the capital attending.
In addition, stamps are expected to be issued and TV dramas filmed.