The Falling of the Red General Liu Yazhou

DO NOT USE Liu Yazhou, a retired Chinese Air Force General and author, may face a sentence to death with a reprieve. Some suggest that his arrest may have been motivated by his public disagreements with Chairman Xi Jinping and the CCP. (Video screenshot by The Epochtimes)

Unconfirmed reports from China suggest that Liu Yazhou, a retired Chinese Air Force General, may face a sentence to death with a reprieve, which could be commuted to life in prison. Liu has been investigated on corruption charges since 2021, but some suggest that his arrest may have been motivated by his public disagreements with Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Official Chinese media has neither confirmed nor denied any details about Liu’s legal troubles. On March 24, Ming Pao, a Hong Kong newspaper known for its ties with the CCP, reported that Liu had been imprisoned for his corrupt practices and political ambitions and was likely to receive a serious sentence, possibly even a death sentence with reprieve. The reason for Ming Pao’s publication of this story is unclear, but Dr. Wang Youqun, the former CCP copywriter, speculated that the CCP may have leaked the story as a warning to others who might criticize the party or Xi.

Prior to his arrest, Liu was a military role model and rising star within the CCP. He was born into a prominent military family, grew up as a second-generation communist, and was well-educated. Additionally, his wife was a childhood neighbor and playmate of Xi, and his father-in-law was Li Xiannian, the former state chairman of China from 1983 to 1988 and one of the Eight Elders of the CCP during the Deng Xiaoping era. This makes Liu’s case even more intriguing.

Liu Yazhou was born in 1952 in Ningbo, Zhejiang. His father was a veteran of the CCP’s New Fourth Army and served as the deputy political commissar of the Lanzhou Military Region. At the age of 16, Liu began serving in his father’s unit and joined the CCP at the age of 18.

During the Cultural Revolution in 1972, Liu was awarded a military scholarship to study English at Wuhan University where he met his future wife. He graduated in 1975 and was subsequently assigned to work at the Beijing Civil Aviation Administration. In 1984, he became a member of the China Writers Association. Later, from 1986 to 1987, Liu was a visiting scholar at California’s Stanford University, where he had associations with many people in the American military, political, and academic fields.

Liu Yazhou Rose to Prominence During the Reign of Jiang

Liu’s formal career took off during the former CCP leader Jiang Zemin’s era. From 1996 through 2012, he advanced through the Air Force ranks of Major General, Lieutenant General, and General. During this time, he served as the Director of the Air Force Political Department in the Beijing Military Region, Deputy Political Commissar of the Air Force, and Political Commissar of the National Defense University. Liu was also a member of the 18th Central Committee of the CCP. He retired in 2017 before reaching the age of 65.

Liu’s proficiency in Western languages and his experience studying abroad laid the foundation for him to become an influential leader within the CCP and on the international stage. He had interactions with former U.S. Department of Defense adviser Michael Pillsbury and wrote the preface for the Chinese version of Pillsbury’s book, “The Hundred-Year Marathon.”

Liu’s upbringing and relationships within the Marxism-Leninism culture of the CCP were advantageous to his reputation and career. His time spent in the United States also made him one of the few “pro-Western” individuals within the Chinese military. Despite his communist roots, Liu harbors a pro-American inclination, which may have contributed to his differences with Xi.

Upsetting the Top Leader

Since coming into power ten years ago, Xi has solidified his authority by eliminating the Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao factions. He has also worked to prevent a military coup, but his troops’ loyalty is not absolute. Unlike his predecessors Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, Xi lacks military experience.

In contrast, Liu is deeply entrenched in the military, with two brothers who hold high-ranking positions and former students from the National Defense University who have become senior military leaders. Furthermore, according to Michael Pillsbury, Liu has close ties with the Jiang faction, which previously attempted to overthrow Xi. Liu also had connections with the Hu Jintao faction, which was purged by Xi despite its leanings towards reform. Hu Jintao promoted him to General in 2012.

At the beginning of Xi’s reign, Liu supported Xi and wrote articles praising him. In May 2013, he published an article titled “Defending the Sacred ‘Party Nature’'' in the party-run People’s Daily to show his loyalty.

But their opinions later diverged. A second-generation communist told The Epochtimes that Liu disliked Xi and expressed his dissatisfaction at gatherings of the princelings, descendants of prominent and influential senior CCP officials. Articles published on China’s “Red Culture Network” portray Liu unfavorably as “a typically ambitious and scheming person.” On the issue of Taiwan, Liu opposes aggressive unification tactics, which contradict Xi’s approach. From Xi’s perspective, Liu engages in “reckless speculations about the central government.”

A collection of Liu Yazhou’s internal speeches published in Los Angeles in 2014, collected by the East Asia Library at Princeton University, contains extensive discussions of Liu’s views on the Taiwan issue. (See the picture below)

On page 106, Liu Yazhou said: “I do not advocate rashly using force against Taiwan, especially not an attack where both sides suffer... The liberation of Taiwan is a civil war, and even if the victory is glorious, it is a loss and harm to our own country and nation.”

A compilation of important historical documents of the Chinese Communist Party, Volume 27, Collection of Contemporary Chinese Military History Materials, Issue 72, Liu Yazhou's Strategic Essays (Revised and expanded edition of 2012). Compiled by the Chinese Publication Service Center, Los Angeles, USA, 2014. (library.princeton.edu/screenshot via The Epoch Times)

One of Liu’s brothers, Liu Yawei, currently serves as the China Program Director for the Carter Center in the US and has connections with several prominent figures. The website he edits, “China-US Focus,” has published articles criticizing Xi. One of the authors, Hu Wei, was one of the “three representations” of Jiang Zemin’s literary and artistic talents. This is yet another concern for Xi regarding Liu.

In 2016, the CCP’s CCTV network released an eight-part documentary series promoting the Party’s ideology, entitled “The Long March That Shook the World.” Liu played a pivotal role in casting Bai Ling, a Chinese-American actress, as the lead. After the documentary premiered, state media criticized the production for using a “sexy star,” who had “slandered the People’s Liberation Army.” This referred to Bai Ling’s previous acting experience in pornographic films.

Bai Ling had been an artistic soldier in the Chengdu Military Region stationed in Linzhi, Tibet. She testified before the U.S. Congress, claiming leaders of the People’s Liberation Army had sexually assaulted her. She later had an abortion, which left her with deep emotional scars.

Bai Ling’s controversial past and lead role in the documentary satirized the CCP’s military’s “glorious image.” Upon learning about this scandal and Liu’s role in it, Xi became furious.

Deeply Rooted in CCP Culture

Although Liu Yazhou had a pro-American inclination, he ultimately benefited from the Communist Party’s dividends and became a beneficiary.

Liu Yazhou once proudly claimed to be on the CIA’s “die-hard” Communist Party member blacklist for opposing America and peace evolution.

To show loyalty to the CCP’s top echelons, in June 2013, Liu planned and participated in releasing the anti-American propaganda film, “Silent Contest.” The film alleges that the United States is involved in an “anti-China conspiracy” and emphasizes ideological struggle and Cold War thinking. Additionally, the film contains defamatory remarks about Falun Gong and names Chinese liberal scholars Mao Yushi and He Weifang as spokespeople for the US subversion of the CCP.

Although critics believe that the “Silent Contest” was a certificate of loyalty from Liu to the CCP, it was insufficient to prevent his arrest and imprisonment. Not just for the economic corruption he was charged with, but also for his willingness to express opposing opinions to Xi.