Yao Yilin
Chinese politician (1917-1994)

Yao Yilin (Chinese: 姚依林; pinyin: Yáo Yīlín; September 6, 1917 – December 11, 1994) was a Chinese politician and soldier who was Vice Premier of China from 1979 to 1988 and First Vice Premier from 1988 to 1993.
Early life and career
He was born in Hong Kong in 1917, and spent his early years in Guichi, Anhui. Yao joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1935. During the December 9th Movement, Yao was the secretary of the Beijing city Party study group. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, he became the vice-director of the Finance Office of the Communist-controlled area. This began a long period of leadership in financial positions. In 1979, Yao became the Vice-Premier of the State Council. At the 13th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in 1987, Yao was elected to the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and later rose to the position of First Vice Premier of the People's Republic of China.
Role in the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests
During the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, Yao Yilin held the position of First Vice Premier of China and was responsible for economic planning and management. Yao was associated with the conservative side of the party which denied that the students were patriotic and advocated a quick suppression to the movement.
The public source identifies “Yao Yilin” as chinese politician (1917-1994). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Yilin, Chinese and politician.
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The entry’s evidential value lies in the named roles, institutions and publications that can be tested against primary documentation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q622826. VIAF identifies the subject as 56537321. The Library of Congress control number is nr2001012794. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1917, 1994, 1979 and 1988.
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This entry incorporates text from “Yao Yilin” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.