Li Peng, former Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislative body, died of an illness in Beijing at the age of 91 on July 22.

Li, the son of a revolutionary martyr, was born in Shanghai. He became a member of the Communist Party of China in 1945 and was sent to study in the Soviet Union three years later. He served in several vice-ministerial and ministerial positions before assuming the post of vice premier in 1983.

Li was appointed as premier in 1988. In 1998, he was elected as chairman of the NPC Standing Committee. He retired from the post in 2003.

Li was a prominent leader of China's power industry and a key pioneer in the nuclear power sector. He played an important role in the decision-making and construction of the Three Gorges Dam—a massive flood-control and hydropower project on the Yangtze River. He also worked to promote China's socialist market economy, democracy and rule of law.