When top Chinese pollie suddenly disappears, it’s not usually a good thing (for them)
Two days after Qin Gang was dismissed from his post as Chinese foreign minister, officials in Beijing remain silent on the reason for the move.
China denies the “malicious hype” surrounding the issue, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Thursday after being asked about the dismissal at the ministry’s daily press briefing.
She did not give any information on Qin’s mysterious disappearance.
He was removed from office on Tuesday after not being seen in public for a month.
His predecessor Wang Yi took over the position.
After his disappearance, it was initially reported that Qin was ill.
There has been intense speculation about the fate of Qin, whose last public appointment was in Beijing on June 25.
The 57-year-old politician has not been seen since.
There have been reports that he was having an affair or was being investigated for other offences.
The Foreign Ministry removed all references of the former minister from its official website.
A search for his name did not yield any hits.
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The disappearance of high-ranking officials, celebrities and businesspeople is a recurring issue in China.
It often turns out later that they were involved in investigations or other controversies.
Among the most high-profile cases in recent years is former Interpol chief Meng Hongwei, who disappeared in 2018 while travelling back home in China.
Two years later, a Chinese court sentenced him to a long prison term for accepting bribes.
