During the last week of 2023, Hu Shuli, “the most dangerous woman in China” as described by BusinessWeek, became the most talked about woman. She published two articles that openly confronted Xi Jinping’s policies. Her writings were quickly removed, and the content of her social media account was deleted.
Entering 2024, on January 4th, the media outlet she founded began publishing her book in a series, “Retracing the Exile Path of Our Forefathers”, and hinted at her anticipated exile. On January 14th, her media outlet released a sensational story on police brutality. That article was also removed. Hu’s successive daring moves have drawn wide attention. Who is she? And why does she have the courage to publicly challenge Xi Jinping?
Ms. Hu Shuli is probably the most outspoken woman journalist in China. She founded Caijing Magazine and was its chief editor for 11 years, publishing many in-depth investigations exposing the dark side of China’s financial sector. In 2009, after facing pressure from the Central Propaganda Department, she left Caijing and founded another media outlet: Caixin Media.
Under her leadership, Caixin became known for being outspoken. After Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign, it also became a weathervane for the campaign, publishing numerous investigative reports on official corruption. Caixin Media is known for having interviewed COVID whistleblower Dr. Li Wenliang and revealing that authorities in Hubei had ordered the destruction of COVID-19 virus samples. In 2021, the authorities removed Caixin from a list of 1,358 media approved by the central government.
Ms. Hu’s work is widely recognized by the international press. In 2003, she was awarded the “International Editor of the Year” by World Press Review. In 2006, The Financial Times listed her as one of “China’s Most Influential Columnists”, and The Wall Street Journal included her as one of “Asia’s Ten Women to Watch”. In 2007, she received the Louis Lyons Award for Conscience and Integrity in Journalism from Harvard University. In 2009 and 2010, she was named one of the “Top 100 Global Thinkers” by Foreign Policy magazine.
On December 25, 2023, Caixin published a year-end editorial titled “Revisiting the Ideological Line of Seeking Truth from Facts”. Quoting Deng Xiaoping’s speeches on being realistic and truthful in reforms and opening up, the editorial implicitly criticized Xi Jinping for misleading the party and the country. The article was soon censored.
On December 31, Caixin released “A Final Farewell in 2023”, commemorating notable figures who passed away in the year. The first person on the list is former premier Li Keqiang, whose death in Shanghai while swimming appeared suspicious to many. The piece also featured Dr. Jiang Yanyong, the whistleblower who made the SARS epidemic known to the outside world in 2003, and Dr. Gao Yaojie, who dedicated her life to helping AIDS patients in poor Henan villages who contracted AIDS by selling blood. The article was quickly taken down, and all content in Ms. Hu’s Weibo account was deleted.
After her two articles were censored, Caixin Media began serializing her book “Retracing the Exile Path of My Forefathers”. The book recounts Hu’s eight-day journey in June 2023, retracing the exile route of her great uncle Hu Yuzhi who was a former senior CCP leader. The preface of the book makes a strong statement with this text: “We use our pens when we have them, our voices when we can speak, and when we can’t use them, we are ready to combat with flesh and blood on the battlefield.”
People say that Ms. Hu was sending a clear message in her latest work. They say she is singing a final dirge and bidding farewell to her readers.
Wang Jintao: In my opinion, she sang a dirge and expected it to be game over. It turned out that Xi Jinping didn’t touch her so she sang the second and the third dirge. The three dirges were connected and explained why she was bidding farewell and what she would do next. The first dirge lamented that the reforms were dead. 10 years ago, a Chinese scholar said “After the reforms die, revolution will return.” Her first article was saying the reforms are dead and she will quit.
The second article talks about the deaths of Li Keqiang and Henry Kissinger, implying that reforms are dead so she’s quitting. The third one is about what she’s going to do next. Hu was signaling she was quitting and would retreat from the public but wouldn’t give up the fight. “When I can’t fight using my name publicly, I can be anonymous; when I can’t fight using my pen, I‘ll fight in other ways.”
On January 14, shortly after large-scale protests broke out in Henan over the authorities’ coverup of the death of a 14-year-old boy, who was suspected to have been tortured at his school by his teachers, Caixin Media published a feature story online on an old case of police brutality in Xinjiang, recounting the horrific death of a policeman’s son, who was tortured by the National Security Brigade. The reported cruelty and the extensive lawlessness shocked readers. The article was immediately removed.
Wang Juntao: “After Xi Jinping came to power, those who have lost all hope are backing out. But people usually back out quietly and glumly. They’re dejected but don’t want to do anything to upset Xi. Hu Shuli, however, is slamming the door while backing out. After slamming the door, she was surprised to see the door was still open. She went in to kick the table. Kicking the table was still not enough, so she smashed the bookshelf before leaving.”
From quoting Deng Xiaoping’s reforms to commemorating Li Keqiang, and exposing public security crimes, Ms. Hu exposed China’s societal crises: a stifling political climate, the lack of rule of law, economic downturn, international isolation, and public resentment. Each article has touched the nerve of the leadership. Although these articles were removed from the internet and content in Hu’s Weibo account was cleaned out, her media outlet Caixin is still operating. This has surprised many people. Why didn’t the authority shut down Ms. Hu’s media? Who is she?
Wang Juntao: “I think Hu Shuli’s connections and background are very deep. In Beijing, people say Wang Qishan is her backer. But she would have more connections in Beijing than Wang Qishan if Wang didn’t get into politics. Boming Wang (王波明), a Chinese financial tycoon, has supported Hu’s magazine. Later, Fang Fenglei (方风雷), a legend and early financial tycoon with international connections, also supported her. She is also very close to Hu Deping, (son of Hu Yaobang).”
“Hu Shuli is also well-connected internationally and is one of the Chinese journalists with the most international connections. She was awarded the Knight Fellowship at Stanford and received several top awards from American news organizations. She’s done what she’s done. Whether or not the authorities will deal with her is being carefully evaluated by Xi. She has a sharp mind and a sharp tongue.”
Ms. Hu appeared on TIME magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2011. In 2013 and 2014, she was listed on Forbes Asia’s “Power Businesswomen” list. In 2016, she was conferred an honorary doctorate by Princeton University. In 2017, she was named one of Fortune Magazine’s “World’s 50 Greatest Leaders” of the year.
Perhaps Ms. Hu’s most important status is a princeling, in her case, I should say “princessling”. Her paternal great-uncle is a famous publisher, Hu Yuzhi, who secretly joined the Communist Party in the 1930s and later became the vice chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and vice chairman of the National People’s Congress. Ms. Hu also befriended Xi Jinping when she was a reporter stationed in Xiamen working for The Worker’s Daily in the 1980s. Xi was the executive vice mayor of Xiamen at the time and the two got to know each other pretty well. When Hu founded Caixin Media in 2009, it was said that she got Xi Jinping’s support.
I think within the CCP circles, Hu Shuli has a particular trait. It’s a quality we are familiar with. You guys know it. The princelings and the descendants of Party officials have a type of ego. This ego gives them the attitude “So I did it. So what! You’re not going to do anything to me.” Liu Yazhou and Ren Zhiqiang both have this ego. The second and third generations of the CCP leaders and officials have this ego.
Based on Hu’s actions, we see that she has an independent mind and a quality that makes her conceited. “You can’t do anything to me. What CAN you do to me?” She is different from those who climbed the ladder to move up from the bottom, the technocrats.
Ms. Hu Shuli isn’t working alone. She is being quietly supported by many others who share her views. But Xi Jinping hasn’t shut down her media because 1) He has his plate full and has recently made conciliatory gestures to the reformers, including promoting Hu Jintao’s only son, Hu Haifeng, to deputy minister of Civil Affairs. AND 2) Hu Shuli has been consistently outspoken and doesn’t appear to have any political ambition. In the scheme of things, she doesn’t pose as big a threat as the princelings who want to overthrow Xi.
On January 17, she appeared at Davos and hosted a CEO luncheon on behalf of her media at the World Economic Forum. In her speech, she said that the world has reached a fork, if not a crossroad.
Watch Lei’s full video here:
