Yu Youjun

Yu Youjun is a politician and former governor of Shanxi province.

Biography

A native of Feng County, Jiangsu, Yu has previously worked in Guangdong as district governors in the city of Guangzhou, as well as propaganda chief of the provincial propaganda department. He joined the Communist Party of China in June 1976.

He came to prominence as the Mayor of Shenzhen, China's first and arguably most successful Special Economic Zone, in 2000. His performance led to his promotion to Vice Governor of Hunan province in 2003.

In 2005 he was promoted again to become Governor of the coal-rich province of Shanxi. During his time in Shanxi, he undertook several key initiatives including the closure of several thousand illegal coal mines and the improvement of environment. He came onto the international spotlight following the 2007 Chinese slave scandal involving children and migrant workers who were forced to work in kilns. He publicly apologized for the mishap, a rare occurence in China, and held himself accountable.

Yu resigned as governor on September 3 2007 as part of a wider Party reshuffle and is currently the Party Secretary of the Ministry of Culture.