THERE WAS strong speculation last night that retired Chinese supreme leader Jiang Zemin was dead after censors stepped up efforts to block online postings saying he had passed away.
Although the 84-year-old former president, car factory manager and Soviet-trained technocrat no longer holds any official positions of power, he has residual influence within the old guard at the top of the Communist Party.
His no-show at last week’s celebrations to mark the 90th anniversary of the Communist Party’s founding was seen as suspicious.
There has also been much activity around the People’s Liberation Army hospital in Wukesong, which is often read as a sign that a major figure has died or is dying. Meanwhile, a special broadcast is also planned for this morning.
There has been speculation for years about his health, but censors have lately started blocking all references to his name.
It shows just how secretive the men who run the world’s most populous nation still are about power and succession issues.
The Communist Party’s two main leaders, President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, are expected to step aside next year in favour of Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang, but the 80-million member party dislikes any forms of potential instability ahead of a big succession and keeps a tight grip on the flow of information.
A former Shanghai mayor, Mr Jiang was chosen from relative obscurity by then-supreme leader Deng Xiaoping as a replacement for reformer party boss Zhao Ziyang, ousted for sympathising with the democracy movement crushed by the army in June 1989.
He was expected to be a transitional figure, a safe pair of hands, but he showed remarkable political nous and held onto power for 12 years. He continued to wield influence as chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission for several years after he had been expected to cede it to Mr Hu.
Under Mr Jiang, China had its longest period of stable economic growth under Communist rule. It also entered the World Trade Organisation, and won the right to host the 2008 Olympics.
Searches for “Jiang Zemin” in Chinese, or just “Jiang”, prompted warnings on Weibo, China’s version of the banned Twitter microblogging site, that they were illegal.
Hong Kong television reported his death last night, but there was no information from official channels about the man who handed power to Mr Hu in 2002.
His “Three Represents” political theory has been written into the party constitution alongside the hallowed Mao Zedong Thought and Deng Xiaoping Theory, securing Mr Jiang a place in China’s socialist pantheon.
At a National Party Congress nine years ago, he placed close allies in the all-powerful nine-man politburo, which meant his influence remained strong after he was supposed to have stepped down.
Known for his ability to outflank rivals, he proved adept at imposing himself on the bureaucracy, and gave himself plenty of profile abroad. His rendition of Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender at a meeting in Manila was legendary.
He had a prominent place during celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of the Communist Revolution in 2009.