Death of Jiang Zemin, the former president who guided China’s rise.

Former president Jiang Zemin, who brought China out of isolation after the military crushed pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989 and championed economic reforms that led to a decade of explosive growth, died Wednesday at the age of 96.

Jiang died of leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai, where he was a former mayor and Communist Party secretary, state television and the official Xinhua news agency reported.

A surprise choice to lead a divided Communist Party after the turmoil of 1989, Jiang saw China through historic changes, including a revival of market-oriented reforms, the return of Hong Kong from British rule in 1997 and Beijing’s entry into the World Trade Organization in 2001.

Even as China opened up to the outside world, Jiang’s government crushed dissent. It imprisoned human rights activists, workers, and pro-democracy activists and banned the Falun Gong spiritual movement, which the ruling party viewed as a threat to its monopoly on power.

Jiang relinquished his last official title in 2004, but remained a force behind the scenes in the disputes that led to the rise of current President Xi Jinping, who came to power in 2012.

Xi has tightened political control, crushed what little dissent remained in China, and reaffirmed the dominance of state-owned industry. (With AP)

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