Former Chinese President Hu Jintao made his first public appearance this week since his high-profile departure from the Communist Party Congress in October. CCTV footage from state television showed him attending a ceremony at Beijing’s General Army Hospital on Monday (Dec 5) honoring former president Jiang Zemin, shortly before he was cremated.
He is seen standing next to President Xi Jinping while an aide stands by him as senior leaders bow three times in a row before Jiang Zemin’s remains.
He then appears unsteadily walking with the help of the same aide while party cadres walk around the remains and talk to Jiang Zemin’s widow.
Escorted from the congress of the Communist Party
In October, 79-year-old Hu Jintao appeared old and tired at the Communist Party Congress. On the last day, he was escorted in front of the cameras from the great hall of the People’s Palace, where the closing ceremony of the congress took place. An incident that disrupted the perfectly choreographed sequence, paving the way for a third term for Xi Jinping.
State media later announced that he was not feeling well, but his visible displeasure as he was led away led to speculation about possible political motives behind his departure. Some in particular interpreted the incident as a clear political message that Xi Jinping wanted to send to those who wanted to oppose his third term.
In his opening speech at the congress, he claimed to have fixed the huge problems hindering China and the party, which he said he had inherited from his predecessors, including Hu Jintao, such as corruption and the unequal distribution of wealth. And Hu Chunhua, Hu Jintao’s protégé and whose name had been floated to join the party’s Politburo Standing Committee, the summit of power in China, was ultimately not selected.
The new standing committee now consists only of supporters and allies of Xi Jinping. Online censorship deleted any mention of Hu Jintao’s sudden departure shortly after the incident.
Source: Le Figaro
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