Zhang Meiyuan
张美远
Commander of the Qinghai Military District [zh]
In office
March 1993 – May 1996
Preceded byFang Denghua
Succeeded byLan Zhongjie
Commander of the 38th Group Army
In office
June 1989 – December 1994
Preceded byXu Qinxian
Succeeded byLiu Pixun [zh]
Personal details
BornNovember 1937 (age 86)
Bazhong County, Sichuan, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party
Alma materPLA Jinzhou Infantry School
PLA Military Academy
Military service
Allegiance People's Republic of China
Branch/service People's Liberation Army Ground Force
Years of service1955–1997
Rank Major general
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese张美远
Traditional Chinese張美遠

Zhang Meiyuan (Chinese: 张美远; born November 1937) was a major general in the People's Liberation Army of China who served as commander of the 38th Group Army from 1989 to 1994 and commander of the Qinghai Military District [zh] from 1993 to 1996.

He was a member of the 14th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.

Biography

Zhang was born in Bazhong County (now Bazhong), Sichuan, in November 1937. He enlisted in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in January 1955, and joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in August 1958. He graduated from the PLA Jinzhou Infantry School and the PLA Military Academy.

Zhang was promoted to deputy commander of the People's Liberation Army in 1987. In June 1989, he was promoted again to become commander, succeeding Xu Qinxian, who was court-martialed, jailed for five years and expelled from the CCP due to refuse the order to use force against demonstrators in Beijing during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.[1] He led his men to suppress the students in Beijing, which played an important role in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre.[2] For his gallant service at the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre, he was admitted to member of the 14th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party in October 1992.[2] He also served as commander of the Qinghai Military District [zh] from 1993 to 1996. In May 1996, he was appointed deputy chief of staff of the Lanzhou Military Region, in addition to serving as deputy secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission.

He attained the rank of major general (shaojiang) in September 1988.

References

  1. ^ John Garnaut, "How top generals refused to march on Tiananmen Square", The Sydney Morning Herald . 4 June 2010.
  2. ^ a b 郭伯雄如何取代了“平暴功臣”张美远？ (高新）. raf.org (in Chinese). 2 April 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
Military offices Preceded byXu Qinxian Commander of the 38th Group Army 1989–1994 Succeeded byLiu Pixun [zh] Preceded byFang Denghua (方登华) Commander of the Qinghai Military District [zh] 1993–1996 Succeeded byLan Zhongjie (兰仲杰)
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