Published : 2025-05-29
On May 29, 1981, Soong Ching-ling (宋慶齡), Honorary President of the People's Republic of China, passed away due to illness in Beijing at the age of 90.
The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), and the State Council issued an announcement, declaring a state funeral for Soong Ching-ling.
A solemn memorial service was held on June 3 of the same year at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Soong Ching-ling was born in Wenchang County, Guangdong Province (now Wenchang City, Hainan Province).
In 1915, she married Sun Yat-sen (孫中山). During the 2nd Congress of the Kuomintang, Soong firmly implemented Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles of the People.
She closely cooperated with members of the Communist Party of China to fight against the right-wing faction within the Kuomintang.
After the Shanghai "April 12" and Wuhan "July 15" counter-revolutionary coups, Soong Ching-ling and 22 others issued a declaration in the name of the Kuomintang Central Committee, exposing the betrayal of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and Wang Jingwei (汪精衛).
In 1929, she was elected Honorary President of the Second World Congress Against Imperialism and later became one of the leading figures of the World Anti-Fascist Committee.
In the 1930s, Soong Ching-ling, together with Lu Xun (魯迅), Cai Yuanpei (蔡元培), Yang Xingfo (楊杏佛), and others, organised the "China League for the Protection of Civil Rights" and engaged in a tit-for-tat struggle against the reactionary faction within the Kuomintang.
Later, when the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression broke out, Soong Ching-ling established the China Welfare Fund in Shanghai to support the CPC-led anti-Japanese war effort, providing significant material assistance to the anti-Japanese Allied forces.
In 1949, Soong Ching-ling was elected Vice Chairperson of the Central People's Government, and in 1954, she was re-elected as Vice Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.
In 1959 and 1965, she became Vice President of the People's Republic of China (PRC), making her an outstanding leader among Chinese women.
On May 16, 1981, Soong Ching-ling was awarded the honorary title of Honorary President of the PRC. Her extraordinary lifetime achievements made her one of the most internationally recognised women of the 20th century.
