Zhou Yongkang
Awards & Honours
0
Awards Won
1
Rankings
3
Records
There are no accolades to celebrate here, and it would be dishonest to frame Zhou Yongkang's record as one. What he has instead is a place in the history of Chinese governance that no other official holds: he is the highest-ranking figure in the history of the People's Republic of China to be investigated, tried, and convicted on corruption charges, and the first Politburo Standing Committee member expelled from the party since 1949. That distinction is not an honour, but it is historically singular. His case is cited as precedent in reporting on every senior official who has faced scrutiny since, which says something about how much the boundaries of accountability moved because of him.
Rankings & Lists
iFANN Global Fame Rankings - China
Records & Feats
Highest-ranking PRC official ever convicted of corruption
Zhou is the highest-ranking official in the history of the People's Republic of China to be investigated, tried, and convicted on corruption charges.
First Politburo Standing Committee member expelled from the party since 1949
No sitting or former member of the Politburo Standing Committee had been expelled from the Chinese Communist Party between the PRC's founding and Zhou's expulsion in 2014.
First Politburo Standing Committee member jailed for corruption
His June 2015 life sentence was the first time a sitting or former member of the party's apex body was imprisoned for corruption.