Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Bo Guagua

Reuters
Bo Guagua, a 24-year-old descendant of Chinese Communist royalty, seemed destined to one day become a rich and powerful businessman in an economy that in his lifetime would become the world's largest.

His pedigree, elite schooling, easy confidence and connections left those who knew him in no doubt he would pursue a business career and amass a fortune.

That was until a British expatriate, Neil Heywood, died last November in a hotel in a huge city in western China, a world away from the clipped lawns and hushed libraries of Harvard University where Bo was studying. The story now looks certain to ruin his family and upend his ambitions.

People are no longer sure of young Bo's fate: return to his family in China, seek asylum in the United States, or other options.

"Now he is an orphan," a source close to Bo's family said.

I have zero sympathy... none whatsoever. Harsh... yes. Life is full of risks and rewards. I take few risks so my rewards (if any) are small. Bo's family decided to play in the world's largest mafia and up until this year, have been richly rewarded. The article mentions that asylum in the US may be an option. Why? His "endangered" status in China is purely a result of his family's actions: his father tortured, jailed, and even executed hundreds to thousands of people in Chongqing and his mother used guanxi to steal millions (maybe even billions) of dollars. Why show any mercy to someone who was in line to perpetuate injustice and reap the rewards of oppression and corruption?

From the article, Guagua acted like a typical red princling asshole:
Harvard classmates and others who know Bo from China and Oxford say he is not the quiet type: He likes socializing and has at times neglected his studies, much to his parents' displeasure. He has also shown a fondness for luxury cars, once chauffeuring an American girl, the daughter of a diplomat, around Beijing in a Ferrari.

While at Balliol College, Oxford, from 2007, Bo Guagua gained a reputation as a party boy. He was "rusticated" - effectively suspended - for 12 months for academic reasons, said a source familiar with his Oxford days. Some Chinese diplomats even visited the university, northwest of London, to check on his progress, the source added.

Send him back to China and let the mafia deal with their own.

No comments: