Wang Guangmei

Wang Guangmei (; 26 September 1921 – 13 October 2006) was a Chinese politician, philanthropist and the wife of Liu Shaoqi, who served as the spouse of the President of the People's Republic of China from 1959 to 1968.

Life Early years

Wang Guangmei was born in 1921 in Beijing. She grew up in a distinguished and prominent Chinese family. Her father, Wang Zhichang (also known as Wang Huaiqing), was a government minister and a diplomat, having taught at Tianjin Women's Normal College after graduating from the Commerce Department at Waseda University in Japan. He later served in various government roles during the warlord period (1912–27), including head of the Bureau of Industry and Commerce in the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, and as acting minister of Agriculture and Commerce during the warlord period. Sources vary on his positions, with some saying he was an officer in the Beijing Police, and others that he headed the Bureau of Mining in the Ministry of Agriculture and Mining. She studied at an American mission school during her youth and later attended Furen University in Beijing, studying optics and cosmic rays. Wang Guangmei was the first woman in China to earn a graduate degree in atomic physics. After completing her MA at Furen, she received offers for doctoral programs at Stanford and the University of Chicago. In the mid-1940s, Wang traveled to the Communist Party headquarters in Yan'an and served as an interpreter during efforts by the American statesman George Marshall to negotiate a truce between the Nationalist government and the Communist rebels. Wang joined the Communist Party and became Liu Shaoqi's secretary. After Liu became PRC president in 1959, Wang accompanied him on state visits to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Burma, and Indonesia.

Their twenty-year marriage produced one son and three daughters; Liu Shaoqi already had five children from previous marriages. Wang was transferred to the General Office of the Central Committee and worked as her husband's private secretary for nearly twenty years, until she was imprisoned in 1967 at the start of the Cultural Revolution. Along with Liu Shaoqi, Wang led the Socialist Education Movement beginning in 1963.

Cultural Revolution

Wang Guangmei had earlier played a significant role in the Socialist Education Movement with her "Peach Garden Experience." In 1963, she participated in a work team in Funing County, Hebei Province, aiming to implement the Four Cleans Campaign, an anti-corruption initiative.

Her detailed report on this experience, known as the "Peach Garden Experience," outlined the harsh methods used to mobilize the masses against local cadres and corruption. Wang's report was highly praised by Mao Zedong and became an official Party document, widely disseminated and used as a model for similar campaigns nationwide.

Ironically, the same revolutionary methods Wang promoted were turned against her during the Cultural Revolution. Her prominent role and the success of her report made her a target. In January 1965, Mao Zedong expressed dissatisfaction with the Four Cleans work teams. As the overseer of the campaign, Liu Shaoqi, and by extension his wife, faced the consequences of Mao's discontent.

Liu and his wife became targets of the Cultural Revolution, instigated by Chairman Mao. In mid-1966, when Red Guards erupted into prominence — and Liu and other leaders tried to fathom what Mao had in mind — Wang headed a work team to restore order among the students at Tsinghua University. The effort backfired when she came under attack by a militant opponent who accused her of being a counterrevolutionary. Her husband was also under fire by Mao and his deputies for being the leading "capitalist roader". The Central Case Examination Group formed a special team to investigate Wang's family and educational background. Wang was accused of being a "spy for the imperialist services" (a reference to American intelligence) and, according to Jiang Qing, "Sukarno's whore" for wearing a pearl necklace and evening gown to meet the Indonesian president at a state reception.

Wang Guangmei's public role had antagonized Mao's wife Jiang Qing, who was growing politically ambitious. In January 1967, she was lured to a hospital under false pretenses that her daughter was awaiting surgery after a traffic accident. She was captured by Red Guards who took her to Tsinghua University for interrogation. She initially managed to deflect their accusations, but by spring, she faced a more severe struggle session attended by half a million people.

Wang was imprisoned in Qincheng Prison, enduring solitary confinement and harsh conditions for twelve years. During this time, she learned of her husband's death through a terse note from Mao in response to her children's inquiries. She was finally released in December 1978, two years after Mao's death. Wang then dedicated herself to rehabilitating Liu Shaoqi's reputation and engaging in philanthropy, founding Project Happiness to assist mothers living in poverty.

Later years After 11 years in prison, Liu's reputation was rehabilitated, and Wang received compensation for her suffering during the Cultural Revolution. In March 1979, Wang was elected as a member of the Fifth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. In December of the same year, her personal freedom and status were restored. In 1979, she served as Director of the Foreign Affairs Bureau of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. In 1980, she appeared in court during the trial of the Gang of Four as a victim of Jiang Qing's persecution. Later, Wang was elected as a permanent member of the National People's Political Consultative Conference.

From 1984, she served as the chairwoman of the Beijing Alumni Association of Fu Jen Catholic University. In 1989, Wang Guangmei suffered from breast cancer and went through two major operations before and after. Later, due to tumor metastasis, she underwent major surgery again. In 1995, she founded the "Hope Project", a program which aided the poor in China. She donated her family's valuable antiques, a few dating back to the Qing and Song dynasties, to charity and donated the proceeds of 566,000 yuan to the "Hope Project". In October 1998, she won the honorary award of the third "China Population Award".

Around 2000, she underwent another operation, and her health gradually deteriorated. In 2005, she resigned from the post of planning director. Wang died on October 13, 2006, at the No. 305 Military Hospital in Beijing due to lung infection caused by heart failure. Her funeral was held at the Babaoshan Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery in Beijing on October 21, 2006.

Four days after her death, she was selected by the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation as the winner of the 2nd China "Poverty Elimination Award" Achievement Award. On October 24, Fu Jen Catholic University in Taipei held a memorial service for her at the Yesheng Building on campus.

Family

Wang had four children: Liu Yuan, Liu Ting, Liu Pingping, Liu Xiaoxiao. Her son, retired general Liu Yuan, was a prominent officer in the People's Liberation Army. Her eldest daughter Liu Ting graduated from Boston University and Harvard Business School, and is chairman and president of the Asia Link Group, consultants in corporate finance.