The week-long Congress occurred mostly behind closed doors, but Hu’s departure occurred shortly after journalists were allowed in to cover the closing ceremony.
AFP did not receive any response to a request for an explanation from Chinese authorities.
“Xinhuanet reporter Liu Jiawen has learned that Hu Jintao insisted on attending the closing session … despite the fact that he has been taking time to recuperate recently,” Xinhua said on Twitter.
“When he was not feeling well during the session, his staff, for his health, accompanied him to a room next to the meeting venue for a rest. Now, he is much better.”
“HARD TO DRAW SOLID CONCLUSIONS”
Hu’s exit came just before the 2,300 delegates at the Congress voted unanimously to endorse Xi’s “core” leadership position.
“We still don’t know what caused Hu’s actions, such as whether it was opposition to Xi’s power or simply an unfortunately timed senior moment,” said Neil Thomas, a senior China analyst at the Eurasia Group consultancy.
“So without more information, it’s hard to draw solid conclusions about how this incident relates to Chinese politics.”
Analyst Alex White tweeted: “Whether it was deliberate, or he was unwell, the effect is the same. Complete humiliation for the last generation of pre-Xi leadership.”
Search results for “Hu Jintao” on the Twitter-like Weibo platform appeared to be heavily censored Saturday afternoon, with the most recent result dated Friday and posts limited to those of official accounts.
Xi is all but assured of being formally announced on Sunday as the party’s general secretary for another five years.
This will allow Xi to sail through to a third term as China’s president, due to be announced during the government’s annual legislative sessions in March.
Source: CNA
