Rumour mills grind as Chinese leader-to-be out of public eye

China’s president-in-waiting, Xi Jinping, has not been seen in public for more than a week, prompting a wave of speculation on the reason for his absence.

Mr Xi cancelled meetings with visiting foreign dignitaries including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Singapore prime minister Lee Hsien Loong.

A scheduled photo session with visiting Danish premier Helle Thorning-Schmidt was also taken off the programme.

Mr Xi’s whereabouts during this sudden absence from the spotlight may never be known. China may now be a linchpin of the global economy and a force in international diplomacy, but the lives of its leaders remain a mystery to its 1.3 billion people. So when the presumptive head of that opaque leadership disappears from public view, rumour mills naturally go into a frenzy.

“There is a long-standing practice of not reporting on illnesses or troubles within the elites,” said Scott Kennedy, director of Indiana University’s Research Centre for Chinese Politics and Business in Beijing. “The sense is that giving out such information would only fuel further speculation.”