Chiang Ching-kuo (simplified Chinese: 蒋经国; traditional Chinese: 蔣經國; pinyin: Jiǎng Jīngguó; Wade-Giles: Chiang Ching-kuo; POJ: ChiúⁿKeng-kok; Shanghai/Ningbo dialect: [tɕiã.tɕiŋ.koʔ]) (April 27,1 1910 – January 13, 1988), Kuomintang (KMT) politician and leader, was the son of President Chiang Kai-shek and held numerous posts in the government of the Republic of China (ROC). He succeeded his father to power, serving as Premier of the Republic of China from 1972 to 1978, and President of the Republic of China from 1978 until his death in 1988. Under his tenure, the government of the Republic of China, although still authoritarian, became much more open and tolerant of political dissent. Towards the end of his life, Chiang relaxed government controls on the press and speech and put native Taiwanese in positions of power, including his successor Lee Teng-hui.