Former President Hu Jintao Escorted Out of CCP Congress in Apparent Purge

In an unusual scene with great symbolic significance due to the ridicule it entails, former Chinese President Hu Jintao was escorted today out of the People's Palace where the closing of the 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is being held, in what appeared to be a purge with public ridicule of the veteran leader.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
22 October 2022 Saturday 00:30
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Former President Hu Jintao Escorted Out of CCP Congress in Apparent Purge

In an unusual scene with great symbolic significance due to the ridicule it entails, former Chinese President Hu Jintao was escorted today out of the People's Palace where the closing of the 20th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is being held, in what appeared to be a purge with public ridicule of the veteran leader. Hu Jintao, 79, presided over the country from 2003 to 2013, until the current president Xi Jinping came to power.

Shortly after the press entered the great hall and with the cameras already capturing what was happening, some beadles approached Hu, sitting to the left of the president and leader of the CCP, Xi Jinping, and ordered him to get up and leave the room. , to which the former president seemed to verbally resist.

Hu finally left the room, although before he exchanged a few brief words with Xi, who during the incident remained with his eyes forward oblivious to what was happening behind him.

The unusual scene, which lasted about a minute when the journalists entered the plenary hall of the Great Hall of the People, supposes - in the absence of details or official confirmation - the possible political purge of the faction of the former Chinese president, Xi's predecessor in The charge.

It also allows us to foresee that none of his closest ones, such as the current prime minister, Li Keqiang, or Wang Yang, deputy minister and who was supposed to replace him, will continue at the top of the formation.

As he left the room and passed behind the first row where the top leadership was sitting, Hu touched Li on the shoulder, in a gesture that some interpreted as solidarity for the loss of influence of the current prime minister in the training.

Thus, it does not seem that Hu Chunghua, nicknamed "little Hu", has any chance of entering the all-powerful Standing Committee of the formation, in which all members will be close allies of Xi.

However, some observers and Internet users have not interpreted what happened as a purge, but as a possible physical discomfort of Hu Jintao that would have caused his withdrawal from the room.

If it is confirmed that what has happened has been a purge, President Xi Jinping would ensure his absolute control over the CCP for at least the next five years.

Already in his opening speech, Xi was highly critical of the ten-year term of his predecessor, who ruled China from 2003 to 2013.

"A decade ago there was progress but also a series of problems that demanded urgent action. There was within the party a lack of clear understanding, a lack of effective measures and a tendency towards weakness. Bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance persisted in many places and departments. Privileges were an issue and some shocking cases of corruption were found," he said.

He also argued that "growth was not balanced or sustainable or coordinated" and that some people "didn't even have faith in the socialist system".