Hu's dramatic China congress exit fuels speculation, official silence
FILE PHOTO: Former Chinese president Hu Jintao leaves his seat next to Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang, during the closing ceremony of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China October 22, 2022. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang
As per tradition, Mr Hu, 79, had been seated on Saturday to the left of his successor, Mr Xi Jinping, who was in the process of securing a third leadership term that was confirmed on Sunday.
During the once-in-five-years congress, Mr Xi solidified his grip on power by appointing a Standing Committee made up entirely of loyalists - and excluding the three most senior members of Hu's once-powerful Communist Youth League faction.
The timing and circumstances have thus led to fevered conjecture over exactly what happened and why: was it a "senior moment" for a man who appeared unsteady when he was helped onto the same stage a week earlier? Or something more sinister: a protest by Mr Hu? A purge by Mr Xi?
Numerous commentators said the symbolism, at least, spoke to the demise under Mr Xi's increasingly authoritarian rule of the Youth League and China's tradition of collective leadership.
