Chinese politics can be hard to follow and I was surprised by alot of the figures and details. Fascinating what the difference of a few months could make...
A Murder In China
It seemed like it was something out of a film. It seemed pretty implausible that something like this would happen, but this was something else. Perhaps if it happened sooner, it would be controversial, but not to the same level of what was going on here. Even as it was unfurling, newsreports were having to be thorough and explain what was going on, especially as it was all happening in so fast. China itself would be pretty affected as well as its neighbors to try and keep some form of damage control over what was happening and foreign relations.
Granted, that was to be expected when a high-ranking official of China is suspected to be connected to the murder of a British businessman... but that was small potatoes when the accused official was then possibly blackmailed by a colleague and tried to respond with his death. However, none of this is fictional. This was the scandal that unfurled and shook the Chinese political estasblishment.
The murder of Xi Jinpeng by Bo Xilai...
The two men were prominent politicians well-known for having strong rises through the Chinese leadership pantheon. Xi was appointed to the nine-man Politburo Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China at the 17th Party Congress in October 2007. He was ranked above
Li Keqiang, an indication that he was going to succeed Hu Jintao as China's
next leader. In addition, Xi also held the top-ranking membership of the Communist Party's Central Secretariat. However, Xi's position as the apparent successor to become the paramount leader was threatened with the rapid rise of
Bo Xilai, the party secretary of
Chongqing at the time. Many believed Bo would join the Politburo Standing Committee at the
18th Party Congress, with the possibility of creating a counterweight to Xi, or even replacing him. Bo's policies in Chongqing inspired imitations throughout China and received praise from Xi himself during Xi's visit to Chongqing in 2010 . While Xi did not lose his position to Bo, Bo's rise did suddenly shift the political spectrum.
He was also tied over to Neil Heywood. Heywood served as an intermediary, linking Western companies wishing to do business in China to powerful figures in the Chinese political structure. Heywood ran a company named Heywood Boddington Associates, registered to his mother's house in London. In its filings, it claims to be a "multi-discipline consultancy focusing on serving the interests of UK businesses in the People's Republic of China". Heywood developed a business relationship with
Gu Kailai, a lawyer, businesswoman, and the wife of Bo Xilai. Both of them are children of once-prominent members of the
Chinese Communist Party. Heywood appears to have played the role of a
Bai Shoutao or
white glove for the Bo family, doing business on their behalf, since, according to Chinese custom, a prominent party family could not involve themselves directly with financial dealings.
Businessmen have complained that any foreign company wishing to work in Chongqing had to appoint Gu Kailai's law firm, Kailai Law (now Beijing Ang-dao Law), to act on its behalf. Failing to do so would almost certainly result in it being unable to attain required permissions and licences. It has been reported that Kailai Law charged exorbitant fees. Heywood's clients included Beijing
Aston Martin dealerships and
Rolls-Royce. He was also hired occasionally by
Hakluyt & Company, a consultancy co-founded by a former officer of Britain's
MI6 intelligence service.
However, a corruption scandal in 2007 led to Gu Kailai becoming paranoid and the relationship between them and Neil beginning to enter troubled waters Gu was trying to move a large amount of yuan out of China through Heywood, and he demanded a larger commission than usual. When Gu objected, he is said to have made a veiled threat to expose her dealing. It would be later reported that Gu Kailai testified Heywood was murdered because he demanded £1.4 million in compensation for the return of a half-share of ownership of a £2 million house – originally bought by Gu in 2000 – in the hills overlooking
Cannes. The court heard Heywood had blackmailed the family and threatened to expose their corrupt ownership of a villa in the
French Riviera. However, the relationship between them would become disrupted by the Great Recession in 2010, forcing Heywood to temporarily halt business with them, giving Gu some breathing room and trying to further cover their tracks. There was hope it could also lead to peaceful matters. However, it was not to be.
On March 7, 2012, Neil Heywood would be found dead in his hotel room 26 hours after his death. The cause of death was given as
alcohol poisoning. There was no
autopsy, and he was cremated days later. Questions were raised later as friends described him as "not a serious drinker", in fact, some reports have his family describing him as "a
teetotaler". An internal Chinese report confirmed that Heywood died from potassium cyanide added to his drink. It would later be revealed by none other than Gu
Enter Bo's close associate, Wang Lijun. A Chinese former police chief, he served as
vice-mayor and police chief of the megacity of
Chongqing. Wang rose to prominence in Liaoning where he gained a reputation for carrying out effective campaigns against organized crime. He became a close associate of prominent politician
Bo Xilai, initially working for Bo in
Liaoning province, then taking up the police chief post in Chongqing once Bo became party chief there. In Chongqing, Wang was known for his role as a political fixer for Bo Xilai, in addition to carrying out the
Chongqing gang trials, which gained significant media coverage.
Wang would come to suspect the circumstances behind Heywood's death and many believed this led to the troubled relationship between him and Bo. However, it was during that time that Wang would be approached by someone else... Xi Jinpeng. The suspicions that Wang would have would be picked up on by Xi. According to reports, Xi would later come to approach Bo on these suspicions. The meeting between the two men was quiet, but many noted it was where everything went poorly. Xi disappeared from official media coverage for a few weeks beginning on 1 September 2012. On 4 September, he cancelled a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State, and later also cancelled meetings with Singapore's Prime Minister
Lee Hsien Loong and a top Russian official. It was rumored that Xi effectively "went on strike" in preparation for the power transition in order to install political allies in key roles. However, he would later end up found dead from a car accident early October. This would lead to the Wang Lijun Incident, where Wang fled to the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu on Novemeber 16, 2012, the day after Bo was elected to the posts of
general secretary of the Communist Party and
chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission by the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. He would be apprehended after he left and a massive investigation would entail in the weeks that followed. This included notes made by Xi Jinpeng implicating Bo in the suspicions of the murder along with his own concerns that Bo would try and come after him.
It was a colossal media firestorm that would be covered on from late December all the way to Febuary. Bo and Gu would be sentenced for their crimes along with various others involved here. An emergancy 19th Congress would be held and the new general secretary voted in was none other than Li Keqiang, who was working overtime to try and resolve the colossal matter. Because of his work, it was all but assured that Li would end up becoming President of the People's Republic of China by March.
The rammifications were enormous as it would cause a shockwave amongst China, but this would be nowhere prevelent than the impact this would have on North Korea...