Amid claims by a new book that China's first premier Zhou Enlai was probably a gay, a state-run Chinese daily has said that he is still respected highlydespite "mistakes" made by the ruling Communist Party and the "historical limits" of the leaders of that time.
"During his 26 years as New China's first premier, the country witnessed great achievements as well as setbacks," said an editorial in the sate-run Global Times yesterday to commemorate the 40th death anniversary of Zhou Enlai, who was known for his friendship with India's first prime minsiter Jawaharlal Nehru.
"Debates remain over the assessment of those years. There are also many stories being published in recent years revealing 'secrets' of that time, some of which involved unfavourable comments about Zhou," it said, without directly referring to a new book on the former Premier speculating that he was probably a gay.
Hong Kong-based journalist Tsoi Wing-Mui in his book 'The Secret Emotional Life of Zhou Enlai' said that Communist China's much-respected first premier was probably a gay despite his long marriage, and had once been in love with a male schoolmate two years his junior.
Tsoi said that Zhou was close to his classmate Li Fujing two years younger to him when he was 20 and crestfallen by their separation.
"Before writing this book, I really did not have a good impression of Zhou Enlai. But afterward, I have a lot of sympathy for him," Tsoi was quoted as saying by the New York Times recently.
Praising the contribution of Zhou, Global Times said many leaders of his time had their "historical limitations".
"The Communist Party of China did make some mistakes. Many leaders of that time had their historical limits. But some of the reassessments of them are malicious. Some rewrote historical figures outside of their historical context. Some pieced together materials for pre-intended conclusions," it said.
"History is fair. In the earlier years following the end of the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), Zhou was touted as a perfect statesman. Later, on when more historical materials came out, people started to learn about a more complicated Zhou.
"However, on the 40th anniversary of his death, the prevailing public remembrance of Zhou is still as a great statesman," it said.
"The reason is simple. Zhou was indeed a great man. He played an important role when the older generation of leaders, including Mao Zedong, jointly spearheaded a new era. People look at Zhou as a figure closely bound with the country's ups and downs," it said.
"Generally speaking, the image of the first generation of leaders of the People's Republic remains positive. Those leaders went through mistakes such as the Great Leap Forward (1958-61) and the Cultural Revolution, but most of them are still respected by people of the following generations," it said.
"A lot of things have changed in the past 40 years. But people today still look up at Zhou and his comrades. People say the country at that time could not survive without Zhou," it said.
Zhou was the first premier of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976 at the age 77.
Zhou served under Mao Zedong and was instrumental in consolidating the control of the Communist Party's rise to power, forming foreign policy, and developing the Chinese economy.
