Gu Mu: Former Chinese Vice Premier passed away

Former Chinese Vice Premier Gu Mu, who was dubbed as the wheelman of China’s reform and opening up, passed away at the age of 95 on November 6, 2009.

Gu Mu, whose previous name was Liu Jiayu, was born in September 1914. Different from most other older-generation CPC members who joined in the army, he tried to save China through literature. After the foundation of the People’s Republic of China, he took the post of the party secretary of Jinan, deputy party secretary of Shanghai. In 1955 he began to take the posts in the central government. In 1975 he was appointed the Vice Premier of the State Council and in 1988 he was elected to be the Vice President of the National People’s Political Consultative Conference.

Gu Mu played an important role at the beginning of reform and opening up. In 1979, the Chinese central government decided to take some cities in Guangdong as the pilot areas for reform and opening up. Then Gu Mu went to Guangdong to conduct a 20-day research, after which he outlined the policies of the special zone. The outlines then became the guidance policies for the construction of Shenzhen, Zhuhai and some other special zones in China.

Afterwards, his name can be heard in several “first times” for the reform and opening up. In September 1979, Gu Mu went to Japan and got the first loans from foreign government after the reform and opening up, making him become the frontrunner in borrowing loans from foreign countries. Then he presided over the compilation of the Law on Sino-Foreign Equity Joint Ventures, which was the first law on using foreign capital in China.