The Curse of the Chinese Communist Party’s “Taking Down of Politburo Members” Reappears in the Twentieth Congress
One of the curses of the Chinese Communist Party is that almost every session they “take down Politburo members.” The previous session (nineteenth session) did not fully comply with this rule, but in the current session (twentieth session), this curse has fully resurfaced.
Since March 2025, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Chinese Communist Party, He Weidong, has disappeared from the public eye. His downfall is a foregone conclusion, just waiting for the official announcement. He is a current member of the Central Politburo.
Starting from the Fifth Plenary Session of the First Central Committee in May 1927, almost every session has seen at least one Politburo member fall in power struggles (excluding those who passed away due to illness). This has been a curse since the Communist Party seized power in China.
In the Seventh Central Politburo, Gao Gang was isolated for review in February 1954, effectively losing his status as a Politburo member before committing suicide in August.
In the Eighth Central Politburo, many members were purged during Mao Zedong’s political movements, with individuals like Peng Dehuai and Zhang Wentian criticized in August 1959, resulting in the loss of their Politburo status. During the Cultural Revolution, Peng Zhen and Lu Dingyi effectively lost their status as Politburo members in May 1966. Other members who were targeted include Ulanfu (August 1966), Peng Dehuai (December 1966), Bo Yibo, Tao Zhu, Deng Xiaoping, Liu Shaoqi, and Li Jingquan (January 1967), Song Renqiong, Tan Zhenlin (August 1967), and He Long (September 1967).
In the Ninth Central Politburo, Chen Bodu was isolated for review in September 1970, while Li Xuefeng was reviewed in January 1971. Lin Biao and Ye Qun died in a plane crash in September 1971 (non-natural deaths). Li Zuopeng, Wu Faxian, Qiu Huizu, and Huang Yongsheng were isolated for review in September 1971.
In the Tenth Central Politburo, Deng Xiaoping was stripped of all Party and state positions in April 1976. However, Wang Hongwen, Zhang Chunqiao, Jiang Qing, and Yao Wenyuan were isolated for review in October 1976, effectively losing their status as Politburo members. In July 1977, they were expelled from the Party.
In the Eleventh Central Politburo, Chen Yonggui was relieved of his position as Vice Premier of the State Council in September 1980.
In the Thirteenth Central Politburo, due to the June 4th incident, Zhao Ziyang was suspended from work in May 1989 and removed from his position as a Politburo member in June 1989. Hu Qili’s position as a Politburo member was also dismissed.
In the Fourteenth Central Politburo, in September 1995, Chen Xitong, who had already fallen from grace in July, had his position as a Politburo member revoked.
In the Sixteenth Central Politburo, Politburo member Chen Liangyu fell from power in September 2006.
In the Seventeenth Central Politburo, Bo Xilai was suspended from his position as a Politburo member in April 2012 and officially investigated by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection in the same month. (In the Seventeenth Politburo, after stepping down, Zhou Yongkang, Xu Caihou, and Guo Boxiong also fell from grace.)
In the Eighteenth Central Politburo, Sun Zhengcai, who fell in July 2017, was expelled from the Party in September of the same year, and his position as a Politburo member was revoked.
Both Bo Xilai and Sun Zhengcai fell from grace in the years corresponding to the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Congresses of the CPC, before the exchange of power in the Politburo of the Party. According to widely reported insider information, both were labeled by Xi’s administration as ambitious and scheming individuals.
Among the 25 members of the nineteenth Central Politburo elected on October 25, 2017, although no one was announced to have fallen from grace, Hu Chunhua, representing the Youth League faction, was kicked out of the Politburo during the Twentieth Congress. He was later reassigned to a position in the CPPCC, indirectly signaling trouble. Li Keqiang’s mysterious death shortly after stepping down as Premier raised suspicions of power struggles.
Among the members of the twentieth Central Politburo elected in October 2022, apart from Ma Xingrui’s unusual removal from the position of Secretary of the Xinjiang Provincial Party Committee, his future remains uncertain. The most critical focus is on the “disappearance” of Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, He Weidong.
The Fourth Plenum of the Twentieth CPC Congress will be held in Beijing from October 20 to 23. Due to ongoing high-level power struggles and uncertain outcomes, it may not be announced at this meeting. However, the prevailing consensus is that He Weidong is already a “dead tiger.”
He Weidong, who has connections to Fujian and Xi Jinping, was promoted to a member of the Central Politburo and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission during the Twentieth Congress because of Xi’s support. However, he ran into trouble just over two years later, causing a significant embarrassment to Xi’s authority. Taking down He Weidong was definitely not Xi’s intention. Since the various factions within the CCP are still negotiating, the handling of the situation continues to be delayed.
The black box of the CCP’s political struggles is becoming increasingly opaque, with turbulent undercurrents in Zhongnanhai. The curse of “taking down Politburo members” persists in the crimson dynasty. As the crisis within the CCP intensifies, it may soon deteriorate into “taking down the entire Politburo!”
(original article from Dajiyuan)