Ma Xingrui

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Ma Xingrui
马兴瑞
Ma in 2016
Communist Party Secretary of Xinjiang
Assumed office
25 December 2021
DeputyErkin Tuniyaz (chairman)
General secretaryXi Jinping
Preceded byChen Quanguo
Governor of Guangdong
In office
30 December 2016 – 25 December 2021
LeaderHu Chunhua (2016–2017)
Li Xi (2017 onwards)
Preceded byZhu Xiaodan
Succeeded byWang Weizhong
Communist Party Secretary of Shenzhen
In office
26 March 2015 – 30 December 2016
DeputyXu Qin (mayor)
Preceded byWang Rong
Succeeded byXu Qin
Director of the China National Space Administration
In office
March 2013 – November 2013
Preceded byChen Qiufa
Succeeded byXu Dazhe
Personal details
BornOctober 1959 (age 64)
Shuangyashan, Heilongjiang, China
Political partyChinese Communist Party
Alma materLiaoning University of Technology
Tianjin University
Harbin Institute of Technology
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese马兴瑞
Traditional Chinese馬興瑞

Ma Xingrui (Chinese: 马兴瑞; born October 1959) is a Chinese politician and aerospace engineer who is the Communist Party secretary of Xinjiang. Prior to that, he had served as the Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Head of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Guangdong, Communist Party Secretary of Shenzhen, Deputy Party Secretary of Guangdong, and Governor of Guangdong. Ma is a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party.

Ma is recognized as one of China's top scientists.[1] He previously served as Vice President of Harbin Institute of Technology, General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Director of the China National Space Administration, and chief commander of Chang'e 3, China's first lunar exploration mission.

Education and academic career[edit]

Ma Xingrui was born in October 1959 in Shuangyashan, Heilongjiang province, to a family of mine workers in China's industrial northeast.[2] His branch of the family migrated from Yuncheng County, Shandong to Shuangyashan in the 1930s during his grandfather's generation.[2] He received a bachelor's degree at Fuxin Mining College (now Liaoning University of Technology) in 1982, and went on to graduate school for general mechanics at Tianjin University. He earned his doctorate in mechanics at Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT). He joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in January 1988. He stayed at HIT to pursue post-doctoral work, and was named a professor in 1991. In April 1992 he became dean of the school of mechanics at the institute. In April 1996 he was named vice president of the institute.[3]

Aerospace industry[edit]

In May 1996, Ma was appointed Vice-Dean of Chinese Academy of Space Technology (CAST), and became the leader and chief engineer of the Shijian 5 satellite project. In 1999 he was named deputy general manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). In December 2003 he was additionally appointed Chairman of the Sino Satellite Communications Company and worked on various lunar missions.[3] In September 2007, Ma was promoted to General Manager of CASC.[4]

In 2013, Ma was appointed Director of the China National Space Administration,[1] Director of the China Atomic Energy Authority, Director of the SASTIND, and Vice-Minister of Industry and Information Technology.[4] He was the chief commander of the successful Chang'e 3 mission, China's first lunar surface exploration.[1]

Political career[edit]

Guangdong[edit]

In 2012, Ma was elected as a full member of the 18th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.[4] In November 2013, Ma left his posts in the world of science and was transferred to Guangdong to serve as deputy party secretary of the province and concurrently the Secretary of the provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission. In March 2015, he was named Communist Party Secretary of Shenzhen, replacing Wang Rong.[1] Ma's appointment in Shenzhen placed him in his first executive party leadership role. His appointment also elevated the status of the office, given that his predecessor Wang is only an alternate member of the Central Committee, while Ma is a full member.[5]

In December 2016, Ma was appointed as the acting Governor of Guangdong. In a break with tradition, Ma became the first governor in over 30 years to have not been native to the province.[6] Ma was elected as the Governor of Guangdong on 23 January 2017.[7] In October 2017, Ma was elected as a full member of the 19th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party.[8]

Xinjiang[edit]

In December 2021, Ma was appointed as the Chinese Communist Party Committee Secretary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.[9][10] Since his accession to the post, Xinjiang has seen relative normalization in some aspects, such as turnstiles between residential areas being removed and two-day breaks in weekends for public officials being restored.[11] In October 2022, Ma was elected as a member of the CCP Politburo.[12]

In March 2023, Ma visited Astana, Kazakhstan and met with president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and prime minister Älihan Smaiylov, discussing boosting trade; his predecessor Chen Quanguo did not undertake any trips overseas during his tenure in Xinjiang.[13] In March 2024, Ma stated that sinicization of Islam in Xinjiang is "inevitable."[14]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d He Huifeng (26 March 2015). "China's moon mission chief Ma Xingrui named party chief of high-tech hub Shenzhen". South China Morning Post.
  2. ^ a b "马兴瑞2年内三次跨界式工作换岗". Beijing Youth Daily. 26 March 2015.
  3. ^ a b 中央批准马兴瑞任中国航天科技集团公司党组书记. People's Daily (in Chinese). 20 September 2007. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  4. ^ a b c "Ma Xingrui". China Vitae. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  5. ^ "马兴瑞执掌深圳 副省级市唯一"特例"". Duowei. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  6. ^ "马兴瑞任广东省副省长、代理省长". The Paper. 30 December 2016. Retrieved 30 December 2016.
  7. ^ "李玉妹当选省人大常委会主任 马兴瑞当选广东省省长". Xinhua. 24 January 2017.
  8. ^ "中国共产党第十九届中央委员会委员名单-新华网". www.xinhuanet.com. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  9. ^ "新疆维吾尔自治区党委主要负责同志职务调整 马兴瑞任新疆维吾尔自治区党委书记" (in Chinese). Xinhua News Agency. 25 December 2021. Archived from the original on 25 December 2021. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
  10. ^ Ni, Vincent (26 December 2021). "China replaces Xinjiang party boss associated with Uyghur crackdown". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 December 2021.
  11. ^ 穆堯 (21 February 2022). "恢復雙休——馬興瑞新政第一步?". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 8 August 2022.
  12. ^ "(CPC Congress) List of members of 20th CPC Central Committee-Xinhua". english.news.cn. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  13. ^ Lau, Jack (29 March 2023). "Xinjiang Communist Party boss ventures to Kazakhstan on trade mission". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  14. ^ Laurie, Chen (7 March 2024). "Top official from China's Xinjiang says 'Sinicisation' of Islam 'inevitable'". Reuters. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
Government offices
Preceded by Governor of Guangdong
2016–2021
Succeeded by
Preceded by Director of State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense
2013
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Communist Party Secretary of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
2021–present
Incumbent
Preceded by Communist Party Secretary of Shenzhen
2015–2016
Succeeded by
Preceded by Secretary of the Guangdong Provincial Political and Legal Affairs Commission
2013–2015
Succeeded by
Deputy Communist Party Secretary of Guangdong
2013–2016
Succeeded by