Yang Baibing
杨白冰
Yang Baibing
Secretary-General of theCentral Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party
In office November 1989 – October 1992
Preceded by	Yang Shangkun
Succeeded by	Position revoked
Director of thePeople's Liberation Army General Political Department
In office November 1987 – October 1992
Preceded by	Yu Qiuli
Succeeded by	Yu Yongbo
Political Commissar of theBeijing Military Region
In office June 1985 – November 1987
Preceded by	Fu Chongbi [zh]
Succeeded by	Liu Zhenhua
Personal details
Born	Yang Shangzheng (1920-09-09)9 September 1920 Tongnan,Chongqing,China
Died	15 January 2013(2013-01-15) (aged 92) Beijing, China
Political party	Chinese Communist Party
Relations	Yang Shangkun
Alma mater	Counter-Japanese Military and Political University
Military service
Allegiance	People's Republic of China
Branch/service	Eighth Route Army  People's Liberation Army Ground Force
Years of service	1938–1993
Rank	General
Battles/wars	Second Sino-Japanese War Chinese Civil War
Awards	Order of Independence and Freedom (3rd Class; 1955) Order of Liberation (2nd Class; 1955)
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese	杨白冰
Traditional Chinese	楊白冰
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yáng Báibīng
Yang Shangzheng
Simplified Chinese	杨尚正
Traditional Chinese	楊尚正
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Yáng Shàngzhèng

Yang Baibing (Chinese:杨白冰;pinyin:Yáng Báibīng; 9 September 1920 – 15 January 2013) was a Chinese military officer. He was a senior general andpolitical commissar in the ChinesePeople's Liberation Army and the younger half-brother ofYang Shangkun. Together, the two brothers effectively controlled the PLA from the early 1980s until the early 1990s.^[1][2][3]

Yang was born as Yang Shangzheng (杨尚正;楊尚正;Yáng Shàngzhèng) inTongnan,Chongqing, on 9 September 1920. He became a guerrilla fighter in 1937, afterJapaninvaded China and joined theChinese Communist Party in March 1938. He graduated from theMilitary–Political University, theCentral Party School, and the "Northern Shaanxi Public School", which trained security and intelligence officers for the Communist Party'sCentral Social Affairs Department. Many years later, in 1958, he also graduated from the Higher Political Academy of the PLA.

Yang had a long and eventful military career, serving as both battlefield commander andpolitical commissar. He fought in theSecond Sino–Japanese War and subsequently in theChinese Civil War, which led to the victory of the CCP and the establishment of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

From 1949 until 1966 and the outbreak of theCultural Revolution, Yang continuously served in theSouthwest, and took part in theinvasion and conquest of Tibet in 1950–51, as well as the crushing of the1959 Tibetan Rebellion. In 1960 he became Deputy Director, and in 1964 Director, of the Political Department of theChengdu Military Region.

Along with his half-brother Yang Shangkun, Yang Baibing was persecuted during theCultural Revolution, being arrested, imprisoned and expelled from the Party in November 1966. He remained in prison for almost a decade, until he was released in 1975. In 1978, both Yang brothers made their comeback as allies ofDeng Xiaoping. Yang Baibing went on to serve as:

• Director of the Political Department and Deputy Political Commissar of theBeijing Military Region (1978–1985)
• Political Commissar of theBeijing Military Region (1985–1987)
• Director of thePLA General Political Department (1987–1992)
• Secretary–General of theCentral Military Commission (1989–1992)
• Full Member of thePolitburo (1992–1997)

Together with his brother Yang Shangkun, Yang Baibing played a leading role in crushing the1989 Tiananmen Square Protests and was a main planner of the actual operations to clear the square and violently suppress all opposition. The PLA27th Group Army, which arrived fromHebei and killed several hundred protesters, was commanded by his son, Yang Jianhua.

In the early 1990s, Yang was one of many top Chinese officials who pushed for a strategic partnership withRussia, following the collapse of theSoviet Union, despite the fact that just a few years earlier, in the 1980s, the PLA was very active in aiding theMujahedeen against the Soviets inAfghanistan. Yang himself was very active in coordinating military assistance to the Afghans throughout the 1980s, which eventually included weapons such asheavy machine guns,rocket launchers andanti-aircraft artillery.^[4]

After the 14th Party Congress in October 1992, Yang Baibing entered the Politburo, but he was forced to leave the military in 1993 along with his brother Yang Shangkun, who was also forced to step down as President of China and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Committee in the same year. After the 15th Party Congress in September 1997, Yang Baibing officially retired from politics.

Yang died in Beijing on 15 January 2013, at the age of 92.Hu Jintao,Xi Jinping,Wu Bangguo,Wen Jiabao,Li Keqiang,Zhang Dejiang,Liu Yunshan,Wang Qishan,Zhang Gaoli attended his funeral.^[5]

• 1920 births
• 2013 deaths
• Counter-Japanese Military and Political University alumni
• People's Liberation Army generals from Chongqing
• Victims of the Cultural Revolution
• Members of the 14th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party
• Members of the 13th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
• 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre
• Burials at Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery
• Chinese military personnel of World War II

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