A Chinese billionaire has been sentenced to 18 years in prison on corruption charges after writing a scathing essay about Chinese President Xi Jinping just months ago.
Ren Zhiqiang, the former chairman of a state-owned real estate group, disappeared in March after criticizing Xi’s response to the coronavirus.
After referring to a speech from Xi, Ren wrote, “Standing there was not an emperor showing off his ‘new clothes’ but a clown stripped of his clothes who still insisted on being emperor.”
The court convicted him of embezzling, accepting bribes, and abusing his power.
The billionaire is well connected in China but has been critical of the Communist Party before.
“Very clearly, this was punishment for his words. That’s going to be obvious to everyone,” Guo Yuhua, a sociologist in Beijing, told the New York Times. “Those economic problems — this one, that one — can be concocted whenever you want.”
Ren is 69 years old and could spend the rest of his life in prison.
