Editing Li Peng (section)

==Legacy and death==
After retiring in 2003, Li retained some influence in the Politburo Standing Committee. [[Luo Gan]], who presided over law enforcement and national security between 2002 and 2007, was considered Li's protégé.<ref>{{Cite news |date=16 November 2002 |title=Luo Gan: Protege of Li Peng will face explosive issues |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |url=https://www.scmp.com/article/397687/luo-gan-protege-li-peng-will-face-explosive-issues |access-date=5 June 2023}}</ref> After the retirement of Luo Gan during [[17th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|17th Party Congress]], Li's influence waned considerably. He was subject to frequent speculation over corruption issues that plague him and his family. In addition, perhaps more than any other leader, Li's public image had become inextricably associated with memory of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, and as a result he continued to be a widely despised figure among a substantial segment of the Chinese population well into the 21st century.<ref name=":4" /> He was generally unpopular in China, where he had "long been a figure of scorn and suspicion".<ref name=":3" />

Li spent much of the 1990s expanding and managing an energy monopoly, [[State Power Corporation of China]]. Because the company was staffed by Li's relatives, Li was accused of turning China's energy industry into a "family fiefdom".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rosenthal |first1=Elisabeth |date=11 March 2003 |title=Li Peng Retires, but His Infamy for Tiananmen Massacre Endures |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/11/world/li-peng-retires-but-his-infamy-for-tiananmen-massacre-endures.html |access-date=5 June 2023 |isbn= |issn=0362-4331 |quote=In recent years, he has also been accused of corruption and nepotism, particularly concerning the involvement of his wife and sons in state-owned power companies.}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Chu |first=Henry |date=18 January 2002 |title=Tale of Chinese Scandal Backfires on Magazine |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-jan-18-mn-23437-story.html |access-date=5 June 2023}}</ref> At its height, Li's power company controlled 72% of all energy-producing assets in China, and was ranked as the sixtieth-largest company in the world by ''[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]]'' magazine.  After Li's departure from government, Li's energy monopoly was split into five smaller companies by the Chinese government.<ref>{{cite news |author=Antoaneta Bezlova |date=1 November 2002 |title=China corruption probes signal power plays |work=[[Asia Times]] |url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/DK01Ad05.html |url-status=unfit |accessdate=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303233107/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/DK01Ad05.html |archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref>

In 2010, Li's autobiographical work, ''[[The Critical Moment|The Critical Moment – Li Peng Diaries]]'', was published by New Century Press. ''The Critical Moment'' covered Li's activities during the period of the [[Tiananmen Square protests of 1989|Tiananmen Square protests]], and was published on the protests' twenty-first anniversary.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bristow |first=Michael |date=4 June 2010 |title=Tiananmen Leader's 'Diary' Revealed |work=[[BBC News]] |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8721953.stm |access-date=21 August 2011}}</ref> ''The Critical Moment'' was characterized by reviewers as largely an attempt to minimize Li's culpability during the most egregious stages of the crackdown; some also say he attempted to shift blame to Deng.<ref name=":5" /> He reappeared at the [[19th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party|19th Party Congress]] on 18 October 2017, marking his last public appearance prior to his death.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.dwnews.com/china/news/2017-10-18/60018045.html |script-title=zh:李鹏亮相十九大 媒体：并非外界所传病危 |work=Duowei News |date=18 October 2017 |access-date=3 February 2020}}</ref>

Li died on 22 July 2019 at the age of 90. He had been receiving medical treatment in a hospital in Beijing at the time of his death.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/2019-07/23/c_1124789462.htm|script-title=zh:李鹏同志逝世-新华网|work=Xinhua|access-date=23 July 2019|archive-date=23 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723230541/http://www.xinhuanet.com/2019-07/23/c_1124789462.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last1=Martina |first1=Michael |last2=Munroe |first2=Tony |date=23 July 2019 |title=China's former premier Li Peng dies at 90 |language=en |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-lipeng-idUSKCN1UI19Y |access-date=23 July 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Jun |first1=Mai |last2=Ng |first2=Kang-chung |date=23 July 2019 |title=Former Chinese premier Li Peng dies, aged 90 |work=[[South China Morning Post]] |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3019792/former-chinese-premier-li-peng-dies-aged-90 |access-date=23 July 2019}}</ref> His funeral was held on 29 July 2019. Attendees of the funeral included CCP General Secretary [[Xi Jinping]], Premier [[Li Keqiang]], and former General Secretary [[Jiang Zemin]].