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Deng Xiaoping: 120th anniversary of the man who changed China

Illustration: Henry Wong

News

China

As China celebrates Deng Xiaoping’s legacy, the country is again at a crossroads

 Illustration: Brian Wang

Deng Xiaoping puts on a cowboy hat presented to him at a rodeo near Houston during his 1979 visit to the United States. Photo: Reuters

The then-vice-chairman Deng Xiaoping delivers the closing address at the party’s 11th national congress in Beijing on August 24, 1977. Photo: AP

Deng and his ‘true heir’ Xi Jinping differ in strategies and approaches, but closer examination reveals many core similarities.


‘Millions benefited’: why generations see Deng Xiaoping as the architect of modern China

Deng Xiaoping with his daughter Deng Nan in Shenzhen during the southern tour in 1992. Photo: AP

Chinese from all walks of life look back at how their lives have changed as a result of Deng’s policies.


Deng Xiaoping’s legacy in Hong Kong – the unfinished business of one country, two systems

Frederick Ma recalls a “dramatic” shift in fortunes for his company’s hotel in Beijing following Deng Xiaoping’s fabled tour of China’s southern provinces in early 1992. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Annie Wu, daughter of the founder of restaurant chain Maxim, says Hong Kong’s advantages remain unbeatable. Photo: Sam Tsang

 The late Chung Sze-yuen’s mention that Beijing was not willing “to take a copper penny from Hong Kong” under the handover. Photo: RTHK

Some analysts have said the one country, two systems approach of today is “poles apart” from what Deng had envisioned. Photo: AFP

Lui Tai-lok of the Education University of Hong Kong says Hong Kong should focus on what mainland cities are unable to do. Photo: SCMP

Hong Kong analysts and experts discuss how Deng Xiaoping’s policy approach to the city has changed amid protests, pandemics and economic changes.


The late paramount leader Deng is credited as being the “ chief architect” of China’s economic reform which transformed a poor, backward country into a global superpower. In this series, the Post looks at how his legacy continues to affect China today.


Series