Qiu He (Chinese: 仇和; pinyin: Qiú Hé; born January 1957) is a former Chinese politician who spent his career in Jiangsu and Yunnan provinces. He most recently held the post of the Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Yunnan. He was investigated by the Chinese Communist Party's anti-graft agency in March 2015.

Qiu He
仇和
Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Yunnan
In office
November 2011 – March 2015
SecretaryQin Guangrong
Li Jiheng
Preceded byLi Jiheng
Succeeded byZhong Mian
Communist Party Secretary of Kunming
In office
December 2007 – November 2011
Preceded byYang Chongyong
Succeeded byZhang Tianxin
Vice-Governor of Jiangsu
In office
January 2006 – December 2007
Preceded byWu Ruilin (吴瑞林)
Succeeded byXu Ming (徐鸣)
Communist Party Secretary of Suqian
In office
August 2001 – April 2006
Preceded byXu Shousheng
Succeeded byZhang Xinshi (张新实)
Mayor of Suqian
In office
January 2001 – August 2001
Preceded byShe Yihe (佘义和)
Succeeded byZhang Xinshi
Personal details
BornJanuary 1957 (age 67)
Binhai County, Jiangsu, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party (1977–2015, expelled)
Alma materNanjing Agricultural University
Tsinghua University
John F. Kennedy School of Government

Qiu He was a member of the 12th National People's Congress and an alternate member of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.

Life and career

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Qiu He was born and raised in Binhai County, Jiangsu. He entered Nanjing Agricultural College (now Nanjing Agricultural University) in March 1978, majoring in botanical and plant conservation, where he graduated in January 1982.[1] Qiu then joined the Jiangsu Agricultural Science Institute. In 1985 he became an office liaison for a 'party clean-up' project in the city of Huaiyin. The following year he was named deputy director of the Botanical Conservation Institute of Jiangsu (江苏省农科院植保研究所). In 1988 he became governor of Feng County. He also studied at Tsinghua University. From 1990 to 1996, he worked at Jiangsu Provincial Association of Science and Technology.[1]

Between April 1995 and January 1996 he was sent to the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University as a part-time student. In 1996 he began working in the city of Suqian as a member of its planning commission, by September he was named vice-mayor. He then became party head of Shuyang County, where he experimented with a far-reaching anti-corruption campaign, and first explored the possibility of hiring staff to direct public opinion in favour of the government on the internet (a precursor to the fifty cent party).[2]

In 1998, Qiu instituted a program for local teachers to take part in activities courting private investment in the city of Suqian. This unusual program was covered in the Focus Report program on the flagship channel of China Central Television. In 1999, Qiu spearheaded another program publicly 'naming and shaming' those caught with petty crimes on local television, earning a special feature report on the liberal Southern Weekend newspaper. In 2000, he became mayor, and in August 2001 became Communist Party Secretary, the top political position of the city.[1][3] In 2001 he began an ambitious program to privatize education in the city.[2]

In January 2006 he was promoted to become Vice-Governor of Jiangsu, one year later, he was transferred to Kunming, capital of Yunnan province, and served as the Communist Party Secretary.[1] In November 2011 he was promoted again to become Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Yunnan, he remained in that position until March 2015, when he was being investigated by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection for "serious violations of laws and regulations".[4] Qiu's former boss, Bai Enpei, was also investigated for corruption. His successor as party chief of Kunming, Zhang Tianxin, was also investigated and demoted for violating discipline. It is unclear if the two cases are related.

On July 31, Qiu was expelled from the Chinese Communist Party at the conclusion of the investigation into him by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. The anti-graft agency accused Qiu of "accepting cash gifts, using the convenience of his office to aid in the business operations of his relatives and aid in the promotion of officials... accepted massive bribes." He was also indicted on criminal charges of bribery.[5]

On December 15, 2016, Qiu was sentenced for 14 years and 6 months in prison for bribery.[6] Qiu's superior, Qin Guangrong, former party chief of Yunnan, handed himself in to the government in May 2019.[7]

Qiu is an alternate member of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. He was elected at the 18th Party Congress held in November 2012 but barely met the threshold of support for election. Of the elected members, he placed second last in the vote count, ahead only of Li Xiaopeng, the son of former Premier Li Peng.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Life of Qiu He". CE (in Chinese). 2015.
  2. ^ a b 吴多雨 (March 17, 2015). "仇和倒台与五毛兴衰史". Paopao.
  3. ^ "Qiu He arrived in Taipei for business opportunities". 2011-02-17.
  4. ^ "Deputy Party chief of Yunnan under probe". Xinhua News. 2015-03-15. Archived from the original on March 19, 2015.
  5. ^ "南京市委原书记杨卫泽、云南原副书记仇和被双开". Chinanews. July 31, 2015.
  6. ^ "云南省委原副书记仇和一审被判十四年六个月". Xinhuanet. Archived from the original on December 15, 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-15.
  7. ^ Matt Ho (9 May 2019). "Former Communist Party boss of Yunnan Qin Guangrong investigated for corruption". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
Government offices
Preceded by
She Yihe
Mayor of Suqian
2001–2001
Succeeded by
Zhang Xinshi
Preceded by
Wu Ruilin
Vice-Governor of Jiangsu
2006–2007
Succeeded by
Xu Ming
Party political offices
Preceded by Communist Party Secretary of Suqian
2001–2006
Succeeded by
Preceded by Communist Party Secretary of Kunming
2007–2011
Succeeded by
Preceded by Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Yunnan
2011–2015
Succeeded by