Among the prominent candidates for the two vice-chairmanships of the Central Military Commission (CMC), Fan Changlong was considered the dark horse due to his relatively advanced age and lack of CMC experience. Despite these hurdles, the 65-year-old was named vice-chairman of China’s supreme military organ on November 4, 2012. He was also elected to the Politburo on November 15.

Trained in the artillery corps, Fan spent 35 years in Shenyang Military Region, where he became a protégé of Xu Caihou (徐才厚), the former CMC vice-chairman in Jiang Zemin’s faction who would boost Fan’s ascent in the future.1, 2

Before rising to the CMC, Fan was at the helm of Jinan Military Region for eight years and burnished his résumé by joining the 2008 Sichuan earthquake relief efforts.3

Early years

Fan is a native of Dandong, a city bordering North Korea. Born into a poor family in 1947, he was orphaned in childhood and brought up by his elder sister and brother.4

The future military leader proved to be academic, gaining admission to the famous Dandong No.2 High School in 1965, where he was director of the Study Department in the Students’ Union.5 After graduation, he was sent to Gushan Commune in Liaoning province as a rusticated youth.

Fan joined the PLA in 1969 and started out as a member of the cannon crew. According to the recollections of his comrades-in-arm Zhao Hongfu and Liu Wenshan, which were published in their hometown-based Dandong News, Fan is an easy-going and affectionate fellow.6, 7

Zhao, a military-officer-turned-calligrapher, recalled Fan making an impression in a group discussion about the conflict between China and the former Soviet Union over the Zhenbao Island sovereignty.8 "If you have chosen to be a serviceman as your profession, your life no longer fully belongs to you from then on,” Fan, who was still a fresh recruit, said.9

His words were passed among other new recruits to study, according to Zhao. Fan was soon named head of a military propaganda team and gained recognition from the supervisors for his work performance.10

In September 1969, Fan became a member of the Chinese Communist Party and was named a Five-Good-Soldier (Wuhao Zhanshi) at the year end, a PLA-wide award given out during the late 1950s into the early 1970s that honored soldiers who demonstrated excellence in five areas: political thinking, military training, task completion, physical exercise, and the “Three-Eight work-style” (Sanba Zuofeng).11, 12, 13, 14

Zhao speculated that Fan’s most relaxed period in his career was when he was working as a staff officer in the Political Department of the Ground Force’s 16th Army in 1973. Fan practiced calligraphy every night and could enjoy his favorite dish – braised potatoes and green beans. In the sizzling summer, he swam in the Songhua River, leaving his clothes and gun attended to by a friend.15

Those relatively carefree days ended when Fan was assigned as political instructor of the First Company in the Artillery Regiment of the Ground Force’s 16th Army, where he gained invaluable on-the-ground work experience by transforming the unit in one year.16

In 1976, he made a three-grade jump from political instructor to deputy regiment commander of the Artillery Regiment in the Ground Force’s 16th Army, a turning point in his career. Previously, he had moved up through the political side of the military – with this move, he began rising through the ranks in military operations.

Rising star

Having excelled during his high school years, Fan continued his education throughout his military career. He attended Xuanhua Artillery Academy in 1975 and PLA Military Academy from 1980 to 1982, studied economic management and earned a bachelor’s degree from the Central Party School in the early 1990s, and obtained a master’s degree in engineering from the University of Science and Technology Beijing a decade later.17

From 1971 to 1985, Fan moved up the ladder in the Artillery Regiment of the 16th Army of the Ground Force, where he had served as its acting battalion commander, deputy regiment commander and then commander, and chief of staff.

In 1985, Fan joined the 16th Group Army, a Changchun-based sub-unit of Shenyang Military Region.18 The group army, known as “Fierce Tiger of Changbai Mountain” (Changbai Menghu), was where Fan first worked with Xu Caihou, who would go on to serve as Central Military Commission vice-chairman and would aide Fan’s rise, according to China scholar Cheng Li.19, 20

Fan is regarded as a prominent member of the “northeast army", a powerful PLA faction led by Xu that was formed by his protégés, who rose through the Shenyang Military Region, according to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post newspaper.21, 22

Xu was director of the political department of the 16th Group Army from 1985 to 1990, while Fan was a division chief of staff during the same period. In 1992, Xu left the 16th Group Army and became assistant director of the General Political Department, an office that exerts great influence over military promotions.

In 1993, Fan was promoted to chief of staff of the 16th Group Army and by 1995, was elevated to commander. He was appointed chief of staff of the Shenyang Military Region in 2000.

In December 2003, he gained entrance to PLA General Staff Headquarters, serving till September 2004 as an assistant to Liang Guanglie (梁光烈), who was then the chief of the PLA general staff.23

Years in Jinan

In 2004, Fan Changlong was promoted to command Jinan Military Region, the first promotion for military region commanders made by Hu Jintao (胡锦涛), after his elevation to Central Military Commission chairmanship.24

The Jinan Military Region serves as a supporting force of China’s domestic disaster relief missions.25 Fan showed his skills in an emergency and buffed his career prospects by leading the relief effort in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake that left more than 60,000 people dead.26, 27

Fan headed to the frontline two days after the quake, marking him as “one of only a few high-ranking military officers who rushed to the scene and served as on-the-spot commanders of relief work”, according to Hong Kong’s South China Morning Post.28

During his tenure as commander, Jinan Military Region was also experimental ground for the “Joint-logistics System” reform, which combined independent logistics departments in the three armed services to reduce duplication.29, 30

Fan also led the Jinan Military Region in several major multilateral military exercises, including the 2005 Peace Mission, Queshan in 2007, Iron Fist in 2009, and Vanguard in 2011.31 He was also the Chinese commander in the anti-terrorism Sino-Russian Peace Mission 2005, which was observed by several top-ranking PLA officials, including CMC vice-chairman Cao Gangchuan (曹刚川) and PLA chief of general staff Liang Guanglie.32, 33, 34

The dark horse

In November 2012, Fan was promoted to vice-chairman of the CMC, the most powerful uniformed post in the Chinese military. The appointment surprised many Party insiders and analysts.

His two-grade jump to vice-chairman set a precedent, making him the first vice-chairman appointed without previous CMC membership.35

He was promoted over Chang Wanquan (常万全), a general and CMC member who was widely predicted to rise because of his experience and factional ties.36, 37 Chang is considered an ally of Hu Jintao and a protégé of Guo Boxiong (郭伯雄), who had served as CMC vice-chairman and led a different “northwest army” faction, a rival to that headed by Fan’s mentor, Xu Caihou.38, 39

But former paramount leader Jiang Zemin (江泽民) and Jiang ally Xu Caihou insisted on Fan’s promotion, according to Chinese politics expert Willy Lam in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.40 It is believed that Fan’s elevation to the military top brass was an effort to balance factions within the PLA.41

As China’s newly appointed top man in uniform, Fan stressed the need for Party control over the military: “Placing the army under the control of the Party serves the best interests of the army, the country and the people,” Fan declared in a group discussion with other senior PLA officials.42

References

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  11. 11 “Three-Eight work-style” refers to “Three phrases” and “Eight Characters”. The “Three phrases” demands the correct political orientation, frugal and hard-working life style, and tactical flexibility. The “Eight Characters” stands for the four Chinese terms: unity (tuanjie), alertness (jinzhang), seriousness (yansu), liveliness (huopo).

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Last updated 11 July 2014