Deng's Successor Bids Tearful Farewell Jiang Delivers Eulogy: `The Chinese People Love Comrade Deng Xiaoping'

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China bade farewell today to one-time paramount leader Deng Xiaoping as 10,000 of the nation's political elite gathered in Beijing's Great Hall of the People.

Deng's ashes sat in a casket amid white flowers and evergreens and cloaked with China's red flag. A portrait of the late leader looked down on the gathering. The national anthem played. Jiang Zemin, Deng's handpicked successor, stood before the gathering and delivered a 50-minute eulogy.

"Today, we . . . hold a memorial meeting and mourn for our beloved Comrade Deng Xiaoping with profound grief," said Jiang, wiping his eyes. "The Chinese people love Comrade Deng Xiaoping, thank Comrade Deng Xiaoping, mourn …