B.RAMAN
Xi Jinping,59, Chinese Vice-President, who is
expected to take over from Hu Jintao as the head of the Communist Party of
China (CPC) at the 18th Party Congress next month, has not been
attending to his protocol duties for a week now.
2.During the last one week, the Chinese Foreign
Office is reported to have cancelled his pre-scheduled meetings with
Mrs.Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, (scheduled for September 5), Singapore's
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong,a Russian official and Prime Minister Helle
Thorning-Schmidt of Denmark (scheduled for September 10).
3.While Chinese officials have not given any reason
for the cancellation of these appointments, a U.S. official was quoted by the
media as saying that Mr. Xi cancelled his meeting with Mrs. Clinton because of a back problem.
4. These cancellations have given rise to
considerable rumours in Chinese microblogs and in web sites of overseas Chinese
organisations. Despite the attempts of
the Chinese authorities to block these microblogs and web sites, rumours and
speculation regarding Mr.Xi continue to circulate.
5. These rumours and speculation fall under two
categories. The first is that he is undergoing treatment for a back problem
either due to natural causes or as a result of an accident. The second is that
he escaped with minor injuries in an assassination attempt.
6. Radio
Free Asia (RFA), which is funded by the US Congress, reported, inter alia, as follows
on September 10 while discussing the various rumours under circulation:
“China's Internet censors on Monday blocked
searches about vice-president and presumed leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping and the
ruling Chinese Communist Party's discipline czar He Guoqiang following rumors
that they had been injured in separate car accidents.
“The U.S.-based Chinese news website Boxun reported
over the weekend that Xi and He were being treated at Beijing's 301 Military
Hospital after being injured in two separate road accidents on the evening of
Sept. 4, sparking media speculation and rumours that the two were the targets
of assassination attempts by allies of ousted Chongqing Party boss Bo Xilai and
national security chief Zhou Yongkang.
“In an article that was removed within hours of
being posted, Boxun reported that Xi's car was sandwiched by off-road vehicles,
leaving him in hospital with a spinal injury.
“It said He
Guoqiang, the secretary of the Commission for Discipline Inspection, was also
involved in a separate road accident on the same night, when a truck traveling
at high speed hit his car from behind, causing it to turn over.
“The website, whose reports are not always
validated, said He was in critical condition, while Xi sustained minor
injuries.
“However, the report sparked a wave of rumours that
military officers and supporters of Bo and Zhou may have carried out attacks on
the two officials.
“Such reports about the whereabouts and plans of China's
heavily-guarded top officials are notoriously hard to confirm, and RFA was
unable to do so.
“Boxun reported that two military officers have
since been detained for questioning.”
7. I am disinclined for the present to accept the
credibility of the rumours regarding a possible assassination attempt. In view
of the forthcoming 18th Party Congress, physical security had been
considerably stepped up in Beijing and Chongqing for the last one month. It
would have been difficult for any group of conspirators to plot an
assassination undetected and attempt to carry it out.
8.If an attempt had been made on September 4 as
alleged by the rumours, there would have been a further upgradation of security
after the alleged attempt. My impression is that the security alert in Beijing
and Chongqing continues to be at the same level as it was before September
4.One does not notice any sign of security nervousness or panic in Beijing. (
11-9-12)
(The writer
is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi,
and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Associate
of the Chennai Centre For China Studies. E-mail: seventyone2@gmail.com Twitter @SORBONNE75)
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