China’s big vanishing act claims another Xi victim
High-profile economist Zhu Hengpeng has been purged after criticizing the president’s economic policy
High-profile Chinese economist Zhu Hengpeng has vanished after allegedly criticizing President Xi Jinping’s economic policy on social media.
The deputy director at the Institute of Economics at the state-run Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, or CASS, was part of a team that advised the ruling Communist Party inner circle on economic issues.
But after appearing to blame Xi for the current crisis on Twitter-like WeChat, he was detained and stripped of his role at the influential think tank. He has not been seen since April, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week.
“Zhu’s disappearance comes as Xi steps up his crackdown on criticism of his leadership and government,” Business Insider highlighted.
“Most famously, Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma disappeared from the public eye in late 2020 after criticizing Chinese regulators,” BI reported.
‘Indoctrination campaign’ aimed at enforcing Communist Party discipline.
Behind the scenes:
- The 55-year-old’s name has since been removed from the list of staff at CASS, which is affiliated with Tsinghua University in Beijing, the WSJ revealed.
- Still, questions remain about Zhu’s whereabouts after the think tank launched an “indoctrination campaign” aimed at enforcing Communist Party discipline.
Delve deeper: Just hours after the story broke, China rolled out measures to revive an economy suffocating from debt and deflation.
Between the lines: “China’s slew of monetary easing measures have done little to stimulate the economy. Rate cuts are no longer enough to boost growth,” Shehzad Qazi, the managing director at China Beige Book, told Agence France-Presse.
Big picture: Trivium China was similarly succinct. “While these measures are helpful, they aren’t enough to supercharge the economy,” the research consultancy said in a newsletter.
China Factor comment: High unemployment, shrinking consumer spending, and rising bankruptcies after the property sector meltdown need to be addressed by Xi’s government. They should be the priorities. Not locking up economists.