Chinese Whispers: tycoon Desmond Shum on corruption, power and his wife’s disappearance
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The Spectator
4.4 • 785 Ratings
🗓️ 14 October 2024
⏱️ 43 minutes
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Summary
Chinese Whispers listeners can get a 20 per cent discount on the ticket price with the code WHISPERS24. Click here to find out more and get your ticket. **
In the early 2000s, Desmond Shum and his wife, Whitney Duan, were among the richest people in China, with fingers in various real estate, infrastructure and hospitality projects. They also had some of China’s most powerful people on speed dial – including the family of then-premier Wen Jiabao. But that all changed in 2017 when Whitney was disappeared by the Chinese state. Desmond now lives in the UK where he published a memoir in 2021, Red Roulette, and is now an analyst and commentator on Chinese politics.
On this interview, Cindy Yu and Desmond Shum discuss why he thinks Whitney was the victim of a power struggle involving Xi Jinping, the reality of politics and corruption in the China of the 2000s, and how Xi has destroyed the economic trajectory of the once-booming People’s Republic.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Before we get into today's episode, I wanted to tell you about the live Chinese Whispers podcast |
| 0:04.4 | I will be hosting at London's Battle of Ideas Festival. On the 19th of October, myself and a panel |
| 0:10.3 | of special guests will be talking the latest on China's economic slowdown, and we'll be asking, |
| 0:15.5 | what are the social and political implications of it? Is China in decline? Chinese Whispers listeners can get a 20% discount |
| 0:23.1 | on the ticket price with the code Wisp2.4. Click the link in the description to find out more and get |
| 0:29.6 | your ticket. |
| 0:42.7 | Hello and welcome to Chinese Whispers with me, Cindy Yu. Every episode I'll be talking to journalists, experts and long-time China watchers about the latest in Chinese politics, society and more. |
| 0:50.3 | There'll be a smattering of history to catch you up on the background knowledge and some |
| 0:54.5 | context as well. How did the Chinese see these issues? In the early 2000s, Desmond Schum and his |
| 1:02.2 | wife, Whitney Duan, were among some of the richest people in China. They had their fingers |
| 1:06.7 | in projects spreading from infrastructure to hospitality and real estate, |
| 1:11.3 | and they have some of China's most influential politicians on Speedau. |
| 1:15.2 | But that all changed in 2017 when Whitney was disappeared by the Chinese state. |
| 1:19.7 | Desmond now lives in the UK where in 2021 he wrote his memoir, Red Roulette, |
| 1:24.1 | and he is now a commentator on Chinese politics. |
| 1:26.8 | He joins me today on Chinese whispers. |
| 1:29.0 | Desmond, welcome. Thank you for having you. Now, to start with, can we get you to introduce |
| 1:33.6 | yourself and explain how you came to have a front row seat to Chinese politics in the 2000s? |
| 1:38.5 | Oh, well, it's a long story. I first went back when I'm born in Shanghai, I grew up in Hong Kong. I went to school in the States. |
| 1:46.9 | And I started going back to China for business, beginning of 90s, so 93, 94. And I've been there |
| 1:54.8 | in and out of China for about, what, 30 some years. And I really, I think, yeah, the front row seat |
| 2:02.2 | to because of my ex-wife. |
... |
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