Dear China, Where is Xi?

~ By Cynthia Dawn Roy

One of the last pictures taken of Vice President Xi before he disappeared

Rumours are running amuck as the world is looking to China, a country that is striving to display firm political stability, and wondering what on earth has happened to Xi Jinping.

           

            Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping was last seen by the public eye on September 1, and during that time he has missed meetings with Singapore’s Prime Minister, the U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, and an appointment that had been scheduled with the Danish Prime Minister. Foreign journalists had been invited to a photo appointment between Xi and the Prime Minister of Denmark, but on Monday, Chinese foreign ministry claimed that the meeting had never been scheduled and other officials met with the Danish leader.

            It is unlikely that all the government officials know as little as they claim to, but no one is talking. This is causing rumours across the country to rise up in swarms. Common speculation as to Xi’s disappearance blame it on a back injury Xi got while playing soccer or swimming. Some wonder if he may have had a mild heart-attack. The most dramatic rumour being spread included the Vice President being injured in a car accident staged by a military official in a revenge plot.

            This year represents a year of dramatic change in China’s politics, as leadership will be shifting from President Hu to Vice President Xi in a couple of months. NewYork Times reported that Xi was chosen internally as “the presumptive heir to Mr. Hu as the leader of the Communist Party, head of state and chairman of the top military oversight body” five years ago. Political analysts say the transition is still likely to happen… but as long as Xi stays missing, no one can guess what this year will hold for China.