By Mu Chunshan
Many of my friends have asked me what I think happened to Bo Xilai, the rising political star who was fired as Communist Party Chief of Chongqing? To be honest, I’m not sure either. The authorities have so far failed to make a proper statement explaining the move, which has left people guessing, and inevitably created space for rumors to circulate. With social media often faster these days than mainstream media in spreading news, Beijing is increasingly being dubbed the “kingdom of rumors.”
So, what do we know? Very little for sure. Bo was removed from office on March 16. About two days later, there were posts on Weibo (China’s version of twitter) suggesting that military vehicles were stationed on Chang’an Avenue (Beijing’s longest street), and that civilian vehicles were being stopped from using it. This led to speculation that a coup had occurred in Beijing. Such posts were quickly forwarded to the point that I was getting questions about what was going on in Beijing even from people not particularly interested in politics.
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