I read Mahabir Paudyal’s article on President Xi Jinping with interest and liked the part where he mentions how president is regarded in China (When Xi comes to Nepal, Sept 11). Indeed, Xi is regarded as a father in China. But President Xi’s personality is also driven by his second half, the first lady, Peng Liyuan. Here is something Nepalis might find interesting to read. Peng Liyuan, born on November 20, 1962 in Yuncheng County, Shandong Province, is a famous soprano singer in China. She is the first master of national vocal music and a first-class actor in China, who enjoys the ‘government subsidy’ issued by the State Council. 

She joined the Communist Party of China in July 1985 and is a civilian cadre of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. Peng Liyuan was elected to the eighth and ninth consecutive sessions. Member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), she was elected vice chairman of the all-China Youth Federation in 2005. In 2009, she was head of the Song and Dance Troupe of the General Political Department of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

Peng Liyuan was promoted to dean of the PLA Academy of Arts in 2012 and is now president of the PLA Academy of Arts, director of the Chinese Musicians Association, vice chair of the China Opera Research Association, and executive committee member of the all-China Women’s Federation. She is a visiting professor of China Conservatory of Music and an adjunct professor of Peking University and Shanghai Normal University. Apart from being that, she is the United Nations World Health Organization’s AIDS goodwill ambassador, and has been awarded by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) the title of ‘Special Envoy for the Education of Girls and Women.’ 

Peng Liyuan and Xi Jinping met for the first time in 1986 and fell in love. Then they got married in September, 1987. In 1990, Peng Liyuan held large solo concerts in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Singapore, and visited and performed many times on behalf of China in more than 50 countries. In 1992, Peng Liyuan gave birth to her daughter, Xi Mingze. In September 2005, she premiered the Chinese opera Mulan Psalm at the Lincoln Art Center in New York at the invitation of the Organizing Committee for the 60th Anniversary of the founding of the United Nations.

In China, Peng Liyuan is regarded with as much admiration as president XI. Chinese women, in particular, look up to her as a source of inspiration. Every Chinese woman looks up to her with respect. While president Xi is respected for his bold initiative to rejuvenate China and provide maximum happiness to every Chinese citizen, the first lady is taken as a symbol of compassion, love and as an advocate of women empowerment. In Nepal, many people may not even know the name of prime minister’s wife. It’s not so in China. Chinese people very much care what their first lady does and they are happy to see her promote the common cause. 

Behind every successful man there is a woman, goes the traditional saying. In case of China, behind the great leader, there is the first lady.

Riya Karki

Leshan Normal University

Sichuan, China

 
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