all the Bo you need to know

OK, so there are unconfirmed reports out of the Sinosphere that Gu Kailai, Bo Xilai’s wife, is now under detention. If true, that may confirm the link between Bo’s removal and the Wang Lijun affair: you’ll recall from James' original post that Wang supposedly got the goods on Gu as an insurance policy against Bo.

Meanwhile it’s all go on the Bo goes show: Tania Branigan has a generally highly informative roundup in the Guardian. Coverage in China is restricted to the official pronouncement  which local media are making creative use of. Victor Shih says that it’s too soon to write him off, and notes that his successor Zhang Dejiang is from the same general tendency in the Party. This is important because it retains the factional balance and so limits any knock on effects. Zhang is also something of a politburo fireman, not to mention a pretty hard case.

Patrick Chovanec thinks that it was Bo’s demagoguery that did for him rather than the neo-Maoist stuff. So does David  Zweig. This is also something that we’ve argued from time to time here. Elsewhere: This is not a coup, it’s a negotiated sacrifice. Finally, Tea Leaf Nation and Shanghaiist round up the early public response.

UPDATE: And don't miss Bo Xilai's Goldman Sachs resignation letter.

Comments

[Malcs]

"Mr. Zhang Dejiang has recently emitted soft sounds, which apparently came out of deep thoughts". Beautiful.

[Barry Freed]

FWIW, Richard McGregor (and Damien Ma) talking about Bo Xilai on Charlie Rose last night.