Chu Tu'nan (; August 18, 1899 – April 11, 1994) , a native of Wenshan,

Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...

, was a Chinese male politician, who served as a

vice-chairperson The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the

Standing Committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...

of the

6th National People's Congress The 6th National People's Congress (NPC) was in session from 1983 to 1988. It held five sessions in this period. Background This new Congress was the first under the current 1982 Constitution, and the first to be elected under the rules of th ...

and the chairman of the

China Democratic League The China Democratic League (CDL) is one of the eight minor democratic parties in the People's Republic of China under the direction of the Chinese Communist Party. The CDL was originally founded in 1941 as a pro-democracy umbrella coalition g ...

Biography

In 1913, he was admitted to the Union High School in

Kunming Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...

, and in 1919, he was admitted to the History and Geography Department of the Beijing Higher Normal School (later

Beijing Normal University Beijing Normal University (BNU) () is a public university in Haidian, Beijing, Haidian, Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education of China, and co-funded by the Ministry of Education and the B ...

), where he joined the

Chinese Socialist Youth League The Communist Youth League of China (CYLC; also known as the Young Communist League of China or simply the Communist Youth League or CYL) is a people's organization of the People's Republic of China for youth between the ages of 14 and 28, r ...

and edited and published the newspaper ''Labor Culture'' under the guidance of

Li Dazhao Li Dazhao or Li Ta-chao (October 29, 1889 – April 28, 1927) was a Chinese intellectual and revolutionary who participated in the New Culture Movement in the early years of the Republic of China, established in 1912. He co-founded the Chinese Co ...

. After graduating in 1920, he returned to Yunnan to teach in a series of high schools and organized a "reading club" among students sympathetic to the Communist Party. In 1926, Li Dazhao informed him that he would go to Northeast China to work for the CPC as a teacher, and in the winter of 1926, he officially became a member of the CPC. He was arrested and imprisoned from 1930 to 1934 for his involvement in the Jilin School Tide. After his release from prison, he assumed the pseudonym Chu Zeng ( zh, 楚曾) and became a lecturer and professor at

Jinan University Jinan University ( ; JNU, zh, 暨南大学) is a national public university in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It is managed by the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The university is part of the Double First-Class ...

in Shanghai. After the outbreak of the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

, he traveled to Kunming via Hong Kong and Haiphong, where he taught in the Department of Literature and History at

Yunnan University Yunnan University (YNU; zh, s=云南大学, p=, labels=no) is a provincial public university in Kunming, Yunnan, China. It is affiliated with the province of Yunnan, and co-funded by the Yunnan Provincial People's Government and the Ministry o ...

. In 1943, he joined the

(CDL) and became one of the leaders of the Yunnan organization. In 1946, he hosted memorials and protests for

Li Gongpu Li, li, or LI may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Landscape Institute, a British professional body for landscape architects * Leadership Institute, a non-profit organization located in Arlington, Virginia, US, that teaches "political tec ...

and

Wen Yiduo Wen Yiduo (; 24 November 189915 July 1946) was a Chinese poet and scholar known for his nationalistic poetry. Wen was assassinated by the Kuomintang in 1946. Life Wen Yiduo was born Wén Jiāhuá () on 24 November 1899 in what is now Xishui ...

after their assassination by

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT) is a major political party in the Republic of China (Taiwan). It was the one party state, sole ruling party of the country Republic of China (1912-1949), during its rule from 1927 to 1949 in Mainland China until Retreat ...

. In 1946, he went to Shanghai, where he became a professor at the Shanghai Law School, and then lived in exile in Hong Kong after the ban on the CDL by Kuomintang. In 1949, he participated in the

Proclamation of the People's Republic of China The proclamation of the People's Republic of China was made by Mao Zedong, the chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), on October 1, 1949, in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The government of a new state under the CCP, formally called ...

at the Tiananmen Square. After the establishment of the People's Republic of China, he served as the president of the

Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries The Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) is one of the major Foreign policy of China, foreign affairs organizations of the People's Republic of China. The organization is officially termed a "people's organ ...

. In 1954, the Chinese Historical Society announced the list of its first board of governors, with

Guo Moruo Guo Moruo (November 16, 1892 – June 12, 1978), courtesy name Dingtang, was a Chinese author, poet, historian, archaeologist, and government official. Biography Family history Guo Moruo, originally named Guo Kaizhen, was born on November 10 or ...

as president,

Wu Yuzhang Wu Yuzhang (; given name Yongshan (); December 30, 1878 – December 12, 1966) was a Chinese politician, educator, and president of Renmin University of China from 1950 to 1966. Biography Wu Yuzhang was born in Rong County, Sichuan in 1878. ...

and

Fan Wenlan Fan commonly refers to: * Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling * Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling * Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially with ...

as vice-presidents, and him as a councilor. He was elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Central Committee of the CNDL in 1956, and was elected as a vice-chairman of the Central Committee in 1958. During the Cultural Revolution, Chu Tunan was sent down in Minggang, Henan Province, until he was allowed to return to Beijing in 1971. He was twice elected vice-chairman of the Central Committee of the NLD, in 1979 and 1983, and in 1986 he became Acting Chairman and Chairman of the Central Committee. He also served for a long time as a delegate to the National People's Congress and a member of the Standing Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), and in April 1986 he was elected vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress. He died on April 11, 1994, at the age of 95 in Beijing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chu, Tunan 1899 births 1994 deaths Chairpersons of the China Democratic League Delegates to the 1st National People's Congress Delegates to the 2nd National People's Congress Delegates to the 3rd National People's Congress Delegates to the 4th National People's Congress Delegates to the 5th National People's Congress Vice chairpersons of the National People's Congress Beijing Normal University alumni