ABSTRACT
The prodemocracy activity of the 1990s appeared to be less of a threat to the stability of the Chinese government than the economic strain caused by the continuation of Deng Xiaoping’s reforms. Following the Tiananmen incident, Deng announced that he would press for economic growth at an even faster pace. The Central Committee’s election of economic reformer Jiang Zemin as the party’s general secretary in June 1989 assured that Deng’s open door
policy and free market experiment would continue. Jiang Zemin was chosen president in March 1993.
