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Bo's ouster sparks protests in China
[Bangla Daily Star]  Thousands of people took to streets and clashed with police to protest the ruling Communist Party's move to remove popular leader Bo Xilai from its politburo and charge his wife with murdering a British citizen in China's southwestern city of Chongqing on Wednesday.But local officials maintained that Chongqing residents were protesting "over a different issue'' without specifying what that was. The British government had been pushing for a thorough probe into Neil Heywood's suspicious death. Heywood was found dead in a Chongqing hotel room last November. The matter was initially closed as the local police concluded that it was a case of a normal death. But it was reopened and Bo's wife, Bogu Kailai, charged was on Tuesday after his removal as Chongqing city chief sparked rumours of dissent and power struggle within the Communist party. Experts said the murder charge has come handy for the ruling party that was trying hard to ward off its worst crisis following Bo's removal as Chongqing chief. Bo, known as a Maoist leader, had been tipped to become a member of the party's Standing Committee. Experts said Bo's sacking marks a turning point in Chinese politics and shows that the party is unwilling to tolerate effort to revive Mao's legacy . Bo had led a campaign to revive the legacy and carried out raids against what he saw as ill-effects of economic reforms like gambling and prostitution . Bo's campaign that included replacing TV advertisements with pro-Mao songs was seen as veiled criticism of party's pro-reform activities. "The latest move shows president Hu Jintao's ...Hu has been involved in the Communist party bureaucracy for most of his adult life, meaning his viewpoint has a lot more theory than it does practice. He espouses a Harmonious Societyapproach, suggesting everybody should play nice or they'll be shot... regime will be replaced by a more harsh rule that will curb any sign of dissent with an iron hand," a Beijing-based diplomat said. The controversy over Bo began when Chongqing vice mayor Wang Lijun sought refuse in the US consulate and spent a night there. It now transpires that Wang was trying to protect himself from Bo's ire because he had tried to reopen Heywood's murder case involving Bogu. This had led to Bo's removal as the Chongqing city chief. Posted by: Fred 2012-04-13 |
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