Luo Gan (; born July 18, 1935) is a retired Chinese politician. Between 2002 and 2007, Luo was one of China's top leaders, serving as a member of the nine-man Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, and as the Secretary of Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (Zhengfawei), which became one of China's most powerful political offices, and well-funded bureaucracies, during Luo's term. In his Zhengfawei role, Luo held oversight for many law-enforcement institutions, including the police, public security officers, armed police, labor camps, prisons, and the judicial system. Luo retired from politics in 2007.
Early career
Luo Gan was born in Jinan, Shandong province. In 1953, he began studying engineering at the Beijing Steel and Iron Institute. A year later, he was selected as part of a Chinese contingent to go study at Karl Marx University in Leipzig, East Germany where he studied German language. He interned at the Leipzig steel and metalworks plant. He then continued studying machine works at Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg. Luo joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1960, while still in Germany. It was said that Luo had stellar grades and won the Agricola prize for academic achievement while studying in Germany.
Upon returning to China, Luo continued to work in the steel industry, first being sent to the First Ministry of Machine-Building, a state-run department in charge of machines, telecommunications, and shipbuilding. There he worked as a technician and project leader in its mechanics department. As a technical specialist, Luo, like many others in his field, were displaced from their posts during much of the Cultural Revolution, and sent to perform manual labour at a May 7 Cadre School. In 1970, Luo returned to work in Henan province, working for a government machine-building project in Luohe, then transferred to Zhengzhou.
Rise to power
In October 1978, as part of a nationwide reshuffle following the demise of the Gang of Four, former First Machine-Building minister Duan Junyi took on the post of party chief of central Henan Province. While in Henan, Duan was eager to promote his former associates, including Luo Gan. In 1980, Luo was made head of the provincial science and technology commission, and also a leader in the provincial trade office. A year later, Luo was made Vice Governor of Henan.
In 1983, Luo was sent to Beijing and became deputy chairman of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, the state-sponsored trade union group. As a major leader of the ACFTU, Luo was in charge of the day-to-day management of the organization. As a result of his tenure in the union, Luo was made Minister of Labour in March 1988. In December 1988, Luo took over duties of the Secretary-General of the State Council as a result of the illness of his predecessor Chen Junsheng.
During his term as a minister, Luo had developed a close relationship with Li Peng came to be considered one of Li's protégés. Luo was appointed a State Councilor, a position with equivalent rank but slightly lesser responsibility compared as a Vice-Premier, in 1993. He served in the position until 2003. In September 1997 at the 15th Party Congress, Luo advanced further, being named a Secretary of the Central Secretariat, the Secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (Zhengfawei), and a member of the 15th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party, joining the inner sanctum of party leaders.
Luo oversaw a diverse portfolio with jurisdiction over law enforcement and internal security, as well as "comprehensive social management", a nebulous new phrase that essentially meant asserting control and preventing organized protests and social disturbances; as part of his responsibilities, he was tasked by Jiang Zemin to head the 610 Office, an extrajudicial organ established to suppress the spiritual group Falun Gong. As a result of his role, Luo faced heavy criticism from Falun Gong adherents.