Huang Hua | |
|---|---|
黄华 | |
.jpg) Huang in 1978 | |
| Vice Premier of China | |
| In office 10 September 1980 – 4 May 1982 | |
| Premier | Zhao Ziyang |
| 5thMinister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 3 December 1976 – 19 November 1982 | |
| Premier | Hua Guofeng Zhao Ziyang |
| Preceded by | Qiao Guanhua |
| Succeeded by | Wu Xueqian |
| Permanent Representative of China to the United Nations | |
| In office 2 November 1971 – 29 November 1976 | |
| Preceded by | Liu Chieh (representing the Republic of China) |
| Succeeded by | Chen Chu |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Wang Rumei (1913-01-25)25 January 1913 |
| Died | 24 November 2010(2010-11-24) (aged 97) |
| Political party | Chinese Communist Party |
| Spouse | He Liliang (何理良)[1] |
Huang Hua (/ˈhwæŋˈhwɑː/;[2]Chinese:黄华;pinyin:Huáng Huá; 25 January 1913 – 24 November 2010) was a senior ChineseCommunist revolutionary, politician, and diplomat. He served asForeign Minister of China from 1976 to 1982, and concurrently as Vice Premier from 1980 to 1982.
Huang was instrumental in establishing diplomatic links of the People's Republic of China (PRC) with the United States and Japan, and was intensely involved in the negotiations with the United Kingdom over the status ofHong Kong.[1][3] He also played a central role in supporting theKhmer Rouge inCambodia during theCambodian genocide (1975–1979),[4][5] a regime which the PRC heavily funded and armed.[6][7][8][9] In 1979 China launched theSino-Vietnamese War in response toVietnam's invasion and occupation of Cambodia in 1978, which ended the rule of the Chinese-backed Khmer Rouge.
Huang Hua was bornWang Rumei inCi County,Hebei Province in 1913.[1] His studies were disrupted due to theChinese Civil War, leading him to continue his studies innortheast China, which itself wasinvaded by Japan in 1931. In 1932, he enrolled in theYenching University in Beijing, where he was one of the early students.[10] There, he learned excellent English and developed a close relationship withJohn Leighton Stuart, the American missionary who founded Yenching.[11] He also talked with left-wing professors and read Marxist books, leading him to support communism.[10]
In 1936, he joined theChinese Communist Party (CCP) at Yenching, and assumed the name Huang Hua. Later that year, he accompanied American journalistEdgar Snow to therevolutionary base area inYan'an, acting as the interpreter between Snow and the Communist leaders includingMao Zedong. Snow wrote the bookRed Star Over China, which introduced the Chinese Communists to the world. Huang Hua remained in Yan'an after Snow left, and worked as an assistant to MarshalZhu De and later as secretary of MarshalYe Jianying.[3]
During Mao'sRectification Movement which started in 1942, Huang was reported by another CCP member for using his boss's official seal without permission. Due to protection from Zhu De, Huang managed to avoid repercussions.[12] In 1944, the United States dispatched an Army Observer Group to Yan'an to assess the CCP and its military capabilities, prompting the CCP to create a Foreign Affairs Group to receive the guests. Huang was put in charge of the Group's translation affairs.[13] During US Army GeneralGeorge C. Marshall'speace missions to China, Huang served as the translator for the CCP side.[12]
After the CCPtook over Nanjing in April 1949, Huang was sent to the city to take over theRepublic of China's foreign ministry and send ministerial documents to Beijing. He was also authorized by Mao to meet John Leighton Stuart, who was by now theUS Ambassador to China, though the talks ultimately failed.[14] Maoproclamated of the People's Republic of China in 1 October 1949, and Huang's English skills ensured him a position in the newly established Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[3] Initially staying in Nanjing, Huang was later transferred to handle foreign affairs inShanghai. In 1953, he was involved in theKorean War armistice talks.[14] He was also part of the initial contacts with theUnited States inWarsaw,Poland in 1958.[15]
During the 1960s, Huang spent much of his time abroad serving as ambassador toGhana and thenEgypt. By summer 1967, Huang, ambassador to Egypt at this time, was China's only remaining ambassador overseas due to theCultural Revolution.[16] When he returned home during the height of the Cultural Revolution, he was arrested along with his wife and banished to labor reform in the countryside. His exile did not last long however, as he was rehabilitated in 1970, and served as Mao's translator during an interview with Edgar Snow in August 1970.[17]
Beginning in 1971, Huang was the first Permanent Representative to the UN from the People's Republic of China after the UN seat was transferred to the mainland Chinese government.[18] Huang also signed the Sino-JapanesePeace and Friendship Treaty with Japanese Foreign Minister Sonoda on August 12, 1978.[citation needed]
After Mao Zedong's death in 1976, Foreign MinisterQiao Guanhua, an ally of the radicalGang of Four, was dismissed from his post and Huang appointed as his replacement.[19] Huang accompanied Chinese leaderDeng Xiaoping during hisvisit to the United States in January 1979, which led to the establishing of diplomatic relations.[20] Along with PremierZhao Ziyang, Huang participated in the 1981North–South Summit. At the summit, Huang received instructions from Zhao to soften the PRC's anti-Soviet talking points. Huang and his deputy Pu Shoucang did not comply, which Zhao saw as a challenge to his authority.[21]
During Huang's tenure as Foreign Minister, the PRC actively supported the fellow communistKhmer Rouge regime inCambodia, as it orchestrated theCambodian genocide (1975–1979).[4][5][9] The regime was largely funded by the CCP, receiving approval from Mao; it is estimated that at least 90% of the foreign aid which was provided to the Khmer Rouge came from China.[6][7][8] The aid provided by China to the Khmer Rouge included "arms, food, material, training, technicians and, most important, international political support."[9] AfterVietnaminvaded and occupied Cambodia in 1978, ending the rule of the Khmer Rouge, China launched theSino-Vietnamese War in 1979 in response.
When Soviet leaderLeonid Brezhnev died in November 1982, a Chinese delegation headed by Huang Hua as Foreign Minister attended the funeral, where Huang praised the late Soviet leader as "an outstanding champion of world peace," and expressed his hope for normalized relations with Moscow. This was during theSino-Soviet split, when PRC and the USSRcompeted for influence in the world. Huang was succeeded as Foreign Minister byWu Xueqian after his return to China.[22] Huang nevertheless stayed active in "friendship diplomacy" after his retirement, meetingHenry Kissinger during the2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.[22] Huang died on 24 November 2010 at the age of 97.[3]
In 1944 in Yan'an, Huang married He Liliang (born July 1926). They had two sons and one daughter.[23]
Foreign Minister Huang Hua of China expressed support for the Khmer Rouge on March 19, 1980.
Foreign Minister Huang Hua announced in early 1980 China's determination to continue full arms support for the Pol Pot group.
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Foreign Minister of the People's Republic of China 1976–1982 | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by Liu Chieh Representing the Republic of China | Permanent Representative and Ambassador of China to the United Nations 1971–1976 | Succeeded by |
 Republic of China(1946–1971) |  | |
|---|---|---|
 People's Republic of China(1971–present) | ||
