MCLC: leftists dig in for a fight

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: kirk (denton.2 at osu.edu)
Subject: leftists dig in for a fight
***********************************************************

Source: Reuters (8/20/12):
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/21/us-china-politics-chongqing-idUSB
RE87K03S20120821

China's leftists dig in for fight over Bo Xilai
By Chris Buckley

(Reuters) - Leftist supporters of China's toppled politician Bo Xilai are
digging in for an unusually defiant defense of their hero, arguing that he
and his wife are victims of a plot that has opened a dangerous schism
between them and the Communist Party.

A Chinese court handed Bo's wife, Gu Kailai, a suspended death sentence on
Monday after finding her guilty of murdering a British businessman, Neil
Heywood.

But no amount of propaganda about Gu's misdeeds appears likely to persuade
Bo's supporters that the case was anything but a conspiracy to derail him
and discredit his mix of populist economic pledges and Mao Zedong-inspired
socialist revivalism.

The party's far-leftists have openly accused top leaders of plotting to
oust Bo, and even circulated by email and online an extraordinary petition
calling for the impeachment of Premier Wen Jiabao. Its reported
signatories included two retired senior officials, although this could not
be independently confirmed.

"At least for now, I believe there are too many doubtful points about the
case," said Han Deqiang, an academic in Beijing, who has been one of
ardent defenders of Bo's policies in Chongqing, the southwestern city that
Bo made into a display case of populist policies and traditional socialist
culture.

"I believe that this whole incident was intended to eradicate Bo Xilai's
Chongqing model," said Han, who teaches at the Beihang University school
of business management. "They have destroyed a ray of hope for the Chinese
Communist Party."

Bo has been held at an unknown location away from the public since he was
ousted in March, accused of unspecified violations of party discipline,
possibly including corruption and abuse of power. There has been no
official word on how the party leadership will handle those accusations
and whether he will face trial. But Bo's political career, at least, seems
over.

The uproar over Bo shows that, as the Communist Party weaves between
market reforms and state controls, it faces dissent not only from
liberals, but also from fervent leftists who see the party as enslaved by
capitalist interests.

Often seen as the party's attack dogs against dissidents and Western
critics, these far-leftists threaten to open a new front of troublesome
opposition, wielding the banner of Bo against the establishment. If
Beijing deals harshly with Bo, it risks deepening the divisions; if it
treats him leniently, it risks being seen to vindicate Bo and his
left-leaning agenda.

"Originally, the leftists were to some extent ideologically accommodated
by the political centre, and seen as a political tool to counter
right-wing forces," said Xiao Gongqin, a historian at Shanghai Normal
University who writes about politics. "But now they feel disenchanted in
the system.

"They think their chances to realize their leftist egalitarian ideals
inside the system through someone like Bo have faltered, even been lost,
and so they're becoming a force outside the system," he said in a
telephone interview.

If China's economy deteriorates and social strife deepens, far-left
populists appealing to nostalgia for Mao's era could win a wider audience
among disenchanted citizens, Xiao says in his new book, "Beyond Left and
Right Radicalism".

Conspiracy theories circulating around China
<http://www.reuters.com/places/china> about Gu's trial include allegations
that the heavy-set, puffy-faced woman who stood in the dock was not her,
but a submissive stand-in. Less extreme critics say the prosecution's case
against Gu was implausible and riddled with contradictions.

The campaign of online articles and petitions to defend Bo and attack his
foes, especially Premier Wen and President Hu Jintao, has exposed the
extent to which this scandal differs from past oustings of contentious
leaders, which drew scant dissent. This time the opposition is open and
ideological, despite widespread Internet censorship.

"Hu and Wen had to expend all their political credibility to push through
this case against Gu," said one comment on Tuesday on www.redchinacn.net,
a far-left website that has issued a torrent of commentary over the case.

"But once this credit is used, it's gone. Going forward, China won't be
able to avoid chaos."

Such opposition is a symptom of the difficulties the Communist Party will
have in enforcing conformity as it navigates a once-in-a-decade power
transfer and faces contentious choices about the direction of the economy.

"In Chinese politics today, leaders have to look not just at their
superiors, but also at the ordinary people," said Sima Nan, a well-known
defender of Bo's policies who makes a living appearing on television
entertainment shows.

"Bo Xilai can't be shut away like Yang Baibing was, because now is the era
of the Internet, and so controlling opinion is so much more difficult,"
said Sima, referring to an ambitious Chinese general ousted in 1993.

"NOW WE HAVE A POLITICAL LEADER"

Leftist supporters say the effort to bury Bo in disgrace has instead
created a charismatic figurehead for them, a defender of Mao-inspired
virtues threatened by economic liberalization and Western-inspired
ideological heresies.

"Before we were just scholars, but now we have a political leader
recognized by people both inside and outside the system," said Han, the
Beijing academic.

A former minister of commerce who favored sharp business suits and
expensive-looking ties, Bo, 63, appears to be an unusual pin-up for
followers of old-time socialist virtues.

But after being moved in 2007 to run the southwestern municipality of
Chongqing, Bo turned it into a heavily publicized showcase for policies
that his backers said served as a model of growth that spread wealth to
all.

He orchestrated a controversial campaign against organized crime that his
supporters praised as attacking the ill-gotten wealth of corrupt
businessmen and officials. He and his staff also courted leftist academics
with visits and research grants.

"The ordinary people can see for themselves what he's done," said Wang
Zheng, a former college teacher in Beijing who has campaigned to defend
Bo, issuing petitions to China's leaders.

"He really does have a high standing among these ordinary people, and
that's not something that comes from thin air."

Although Beijing has shut several websites that defended Bo after his
ousting, other Chinese websites continue to feature commentaries lauding
him and decrying the trial of Gu as a plot.

"Warning to Hu and Wen: citizens and party members have the right to
defend Bo," said a recent posting on the "Red China" website. The same
site circulated the petition demanding the impeachment of Premier Wen,
accusing him of planning a massive sell-off of state-held businesses.

"Wen Jiabao has committed grave errors and crimes," said the petition,
which its sponsors claimed was signed by 1,644 people, including two
retired central government officials.

"Wen Jiabao has become the representative at the apex of the party central
leadership of a faction favoring all-out Westernization," the petition
added.

The former senior officials, Ma Bin and Li Chengrui, could not be
contacted to confirm whether they had signed the petition. But several
other people who appeared as signatories confirmed that they had endorsed
it.

The "Red China" site has been blocked to the many Chinese users who do not
know how to evade censorship barriers. But Zhang Hongliang, a prominent
proponent of reviving Maoist socialism, said voices defending Bo would not
be silenced.

"Outwardly, it appears that the loser has been Bo Xilai," Zhang, who has
made a living by giving lectures on how to trade stock, said in emailed
comments. "In fact, the biggest losers have been the Chinese Communist
Party and Chinese nation."

(Reporting by Chris Buckley; Editing by Alex Richardson)