China's worst political scandal in decades dominated newspaper front pages inside the Chinese capital Wednesday: a high ranking politician suspended from his key central party post and his wife suspected within the death of a British businessman.
The articles said Bo Xilai's conduct has seriously violated the party's disciplinary rules and has badly harmed clone of the party and country.
The People's Daily, that's seen because the mouthpiece of China's ruling Communist Party, published an article Wednesday saying no person is above the law.
Related - China Strips Bo Xilai of Key Party Posts, Suspects Wife of Murder
Bo is a former commerce minister and most recently was the party secretary of Chongqing, an enormous city in southwestern China. He's the son of a famous revolutionary and was widely expected to eventually join the pinnacle echelons of Communist party in a great party conference later this year.
One of the overall nails on his political coffin came late Tuesday night, in a short lived dispatch from the state-run Xinhua News Agency that said Bo was being suspended from his membership within the party's central committee. Another report announced that Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, is facing a criminal investigation relating to the death of British businessman Neil Heywood last year.
High profile infighting
Veteran writer Dai Qing, who closely follows Chinese politics, likened the unfolding events to a stage play - within which the audience watches, but cannot affect the result.
She said the newest political scandal illustrates a high-level and internal fight inside the Communist party. She said most Chinese people don't have any say in matters and will only watch from the sidelines.
Xinhua said Gu and Heywood had business dealings, but they'd a conflict about economic interests that had intensified. Heywood's death in Chongqing in November was not considered suspicious on the time, but police at the moment are re-opening the case.
Dai said, if Gu committed murder or if Bo was indeed some type of accomplice, then officials need to show proof of wrongdoing.
Dai said she is admittedly sure that Gu will receive a stiff sentence. She said she believes it is because that's, in her words, "the least damaging outcome for the party."
She added that the Chinese Communist party desires to present a united front before a main meeting q4. The session which occurs once every five years, is critical since the party will name the country's new top leaders.
China's Foreign Ministry refused to touch upon what impact these events can have at the country's international image, and said only that the case is being handled by Chinese judicial authorities.
The 'evil' wife
Gu Kailai
Bo Xilai's wife, Gu Kailai, is:
- Being investigated for the murder of Briton Neil Heywood
- Worked as successful lawyer before retiring as her husband's career took off
- Wrote a book about her experience helping Chinese companies win a U.S. legal battle
- Daughter of a prominent Communist leader
Political commentators have highlighted the main focus on Bo’s wife, noting that Chinese political culture is filled with well-known historical references to evil women, who were singularly blamed for committing atrocities.
Michael Anti, a political columnist and blogger, said he found it odd that the official reports all cited her as BoGu Kailai, which appends her husband's surname in front of her own.
"Chinese propaganda guys really intentionally need to tell the folk: [the] woman is not the girl [by] herself. It's BoGu Kailai. It's Bo Xilai's wife," said Anti. "It's not targeting the lady, it is not just like the evil woman destroyed a great man. It's that the fellow, himself, is evil."
Anti agreed that the scandal is indicative of a high-level power struggle. He compared the most recent events in Chongqing to a serialized TV drama that he said was written and directed by China's central leaders, whom he added are the only real ones who know the true story.
From WhatNewsToday.net
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