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China's Vice President Steps Down
But I think we all saw this coming.
BEIJING (AP) - China's politically powerful vice president stepped down Sunday amid a reshuffling of the Communist Party leadership, removing from office a rival to President Hu Jintao. Closing out a weeklong party congress, delegates selected a new Central Committee, a body that approves leadership positions and sets broad policy goals, with Vice President Zeng Qinghong not among those selected, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. Zeng's absence means he cannot be in the Politburo or its Standing Committee, the powerful body that runs China, whose members the Central Committee will approve on Monday.

Aside from Zeng, Xinhua said two other Standing Committee members also stepped aside, Wu Guanzheng, who has run the party's internal corruption watchdog, and Luo Gan, who oversees law enforcement. No reason was given but all three were either over or near the party's preferred but not mandatory retirement age.

Their departure from the leadership, especially that of Zeng, appears to be a boost for Hu, who was reappointed to the Central Committee and is all but certain to be given a second five-year term as party leader. Yet it also raises questions about what deals Hu and his allies had to strike to win Zeng's retirement and whether those arrangements may constrain Hu.

Of all leadership members, only Zeng had rivaled Hu in terms of political influence. A skilled political insider, Zeng rose to power as an aide to Hu's predecessor, Jiang Zemin, helping him shove aside rivals. Though Zeng has also helped Hu do the same, he was also seen as a leading protector of Jiang's legacy and influence within the party.

In a sign of Jiang's continued political clout, another of his allies, Jia Qinglin, was reappointed to the Central Committee on Sunday and will thus likely retain his Politburo seat, despite being tainted by his association with a major smuggling and corruption scandal.
Posted by: Steve White 2007-10-21
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=203254