105-year-old party elder Song Ping was in attendance at the 20th Chinese Communist party meet. Song Ping could be seen reading the report from time to time and talking to former vice-president Zeng Qinghong, who was sitting next to him, during China president Xi Jinping's speech on Sunday.
Ahead of the meeting, Song Ping- party's oldest retired official- had called out Xi Jinping's policies for China and said that the policy of reform is the only way to realize the Chinese dream, reports said.
Song Ping's message came four months after the party's general office told retired elderly officials to refrain from criticizing the leadership of Xi Jinping, Nikkei Asia reported.
In a video message, Song Ping said, according to Nikkei Asia, "The policy of reform and opening-up “has been the only path to the development and progress of contemporary China and the only path to the realization of the Chinese dream.”
{{/usCountry}}In a video message, Song Ping said, according to Nikkei Asia, "The policy of reform and opening-up “has been the only path to the development and progress of contemporary China and the only path to the realization of the Chinese dream.”
{{/usCountry}}His message circulated on Chinese social media following which the authorities began to delete parts of Song Ping's speech related to reforms, the report claimed.
In his speech China president Xi Jinping vowed that the country would "never commit to abandoning the use of force" when it comes to the issue of Taiwan, marking the beginning of the Communist Party Congress in Beijing.