Teaching Comparative Government and Politics

Friday, April 11, 2008

Guanxi in reverse

Guanxi, the web of personal relationships that is often described as the heart of Chinese culture, is usually seen as beneficial to the people connected to one another. But it can also work to one's disadvantage. What if your "patron" is over the hill instead of a rising star?

Ex-Party Boss in China Gets 18 Years

"The former Communist Party chief of China's financial capital was sentenced Friday to 18 years in prison for his role in a massive corruption scandal involving the city's pension fund and state-owned companies.

"Chen Liangyu, who also was a member of China's powerful 24-seat Politburo... was locked up ''for taking bribes and abusing power.''...

"The scandal investigation... has been widely viewed as part of President Hu Jintao's efforts to shove aside supporters of former President Jiang Zemin, whose political base was Shanghai.

"Chen was among Jiang's most powerful allies. He reportedly clashed with Premier Wen Jiabao over Beijing's efforts to cool economic growth, lobbying instead for ambitious infrastructure projects.

"Earlier this month, Shanghai tycoon Zhang Rongkun... was sentenced for his role in the scandal to 19 years in prison for bribery, share price manipulation, financial fraud and misuse of public funds..."


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