The 2026 meeting of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University was held in Beijing. Current honorary chairman of the committee, Wang Qishan, did not attend as usual, leading to speculation that he may be under house arrest.
On October 13th and 14th, the 2026 meeting of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University took place in Beijing. According to reports from Tsinghua University, on the 13th, Ding Xuexiang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Vice Premier of the State Council, met with representatives of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University.
However, the report did not mention the usual meeting or banquet with the representatives of the Advisory Committee by Wang Qishan, the former Vice President of China and honorary chairman of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University.
The Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University was established in October 2000, promoted by then dean of the school and former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji. Zhu Rongji served as the founding honorary chairman of the committee, and Wang Qishan succeeded Zhu Rongji as the honorary chairman in October 2024. The current chairman of the Advisory Committee is Tim Cook, chairman of Apple Inc.
In the past years, both Zhu Rongji and Wang Qishan made appearances in various capacities at the annual meetings of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University. However, this year, Wang Qishan was conspicuously absent.
During Xi Jinping’s first term, Wang Qishan served as the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, wielding the banner of “anti-corruption” to eliminate political opponents for Xi Jinping. In Xi’s second term, Wang Qishan held the titular position of Vice President of China before retiring completely after five years.
In recent years, several associates of Wang Qishan have been purged, including former deputy head of the Central Inspection Commission who long served as Wang Qishan’s “right-hand man,” Dong Hong, former president of China Merchants Bank who was Wang Qishan’s secretary during his leadership of China Construction Bank, Tian Huiyu, former deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China who served as Wang Qishan’s “chief financial officer,” Fan Yifei, and Zhou Liang, who served as Wang Qishan’s personal secretary for 20 years.
An article in the U.S. magazine “Diplomat” in June revealed that in order to secure his re-election at the 21st Communist Party Congress, Xi Jinping shifted focus to target heavyweight elders within the party after purging high-ranking military officials like Zhang Yuxia, with his latest target being his former ally, Wang Qishan. Although the Beijing authorities have not publicly accused Wang Qishan of any wrongdoing, he is effectively under house arrest in Beijing.
However, on August 17th, Wang Qishan appeared at a memorial event for the late former General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, Jiang Zemin, along with some retired senior party officials.
Regarding Wang Qishan’s absence from the annual meeting of the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University, independent commentator Cai Shenkun expressed doubts about Wang Qishan’s current visibility.
Cai Shenkun stated on October 15th on the X platform that it is understood that most committee members have explicitly expressed a desire to see Wang Qishan. If this request is not met, several members may withdraw from this prestigious advisory committee next year.
Cai Shenkun pointed out that Xi Jinping has always valued the Advisory Committee of the School of Economics and Management of Tsinghua University because it has become a stage where Zhu Rongji and Wang Qishan exerted influence after their retirement. In the past, every year, whether it was Zhu Rongji or Wang Qishan, they would make their voices heard or appear in different ways. This year, as Zhu Rongji stepped down, unable to send congratulatory messages, Xi also prevented Wang Qishan from appearing, further solidifying rumors of Wang Qishan’s house arrest.