VZCZCXRO9008
PP RUEHCN RUEHGH
DE RUEHHK #2054/01 1380329
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 180329Z MAY 06 ZDK
FM AMCONSUL HONG KONG
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6742
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HONG KONG 002054 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP AND EAP/CM 
NSC FOR DENNIS WILDER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/18/2031 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR PREL HK CH
SUBJECT: MANUSCRIPT OF ZHAO ZIYANG CONVERSATIONS LEAKED TO 
HONG KONG NEWSPAPERS 
 
REF: 05 HONG KONG 03309 
 
HONG KONG 00002054  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
Classified By: E/P Chief Simon Schuchat. Reasons: 1.4(b,d). 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  On May 15, Liu Baopu, the son of Zhao 
Ziyang's aide Bao Tong, discussed with poloff the recent 
controversy over a leaked manuscript about Zhao written by 
Zong Fengming, Zhao's qigong meditation coach.  Zong, 86, 
recently complained to the media that portions of his 
manuscript, based on conversations with Zhao between 1992 and 
2004, had been leaked and published without his authorization 
in two Hong Kong newspapers.  A "former PRC provincial 
governor" had "betrayed" Zong, by prematurely leaking it to 
two Hong Kong newspapers, according to Liu, who said the 
manuscript contained some interesting insights into Zhao but 
did not offer any groundbreaking revelations.  Zong confirmed 
that detained journalist Ching Cheong had contacted him about 
obtaining the rights to his book, but denied that his 
manuscript was related to Ching's arrest.  Publishers' 
interest in the manuscript had been damaged by the leaks in 
the Hong Kong media, concluded Liu.  End Summary. 
 
Author Complains about Leaked Manuscript 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (C) On May 15, Liu Baopu, the son of Zhao Ziyang's aide 
Bao Tong, discussed with poloff the recent controversy over a 
leaked manuscript of conversations with Zhao, written by Zong 
Fengming, Zhao's childhood friend and qigong meditation 
coach.  Zong, an 86-year old former Communist Party official, 
contacted the "Washington Post" and the "South China Morning 
Post (SCMP)" in early May to complain that portions of his 
manuscript, detailing his conversations with Zhao from 
1992-2004, had been published without his authorization in 
the "Hong Kong Economic Journal (HKEJ)" and "Ming Pao."  Zong 
claimed that a significant portion of the manuscript was 
about the June 4 Tiananmen incident and that Zhao had 
personally vetted the first draft of the book.  Chan 
King-cheung, Chief Editor of the HKEJ, reportedly responded 
to Zong's allegations by saying, "we believe the content of 
the manuscript is genuine" and that the newspaper was unaware 
of Zong's role in the manuscript. 
 
¶3. (C) Zong had provided earlier versions of the manuscript 
to friends for their review, Liu said, and a "former PRC 
provincial governor" had "betrayed" Zong by leaking it to the 
two Hong Kong newspapers.  Liu speculated that this was not 
done out of greed, but that this individual wanted to share 
Zhao's thoughts and naively allowed the Hong Kong newspapers 
to serialize, abridge and publish them under pen names. 
These snippets of Zong's manuscript lacked the impact that a 
properly edited book could have had, complained Liu. 
 
Sensitive Manuscript Interesting, Not Groundbreaking 
--------------------------------------------- ------- 
 
¶4. (C) Liu told poloff that he had read an early version of 
the entire manuscript two years ago.  Commenting on the book, 
Liu said that Zong had accurately jotted down his 
conversations with Zhao, but having never worked in the inner 
circle of top PRC leaders, was unable to contextualize many 
of Zhao's comments.  The manuscript contained some 
interesting insights into Zhao's thinking, said Liu, but did 
not offer any groundbreaking revelations.  Nevertheless, Liu 
believed it was a "hot" manuscript and had shown it to 
several prominent members of the U.S. human rights community 
to gauge interest in the book.  He had also heard that the 
Central Government desperately wanted to prevent the 
manuscript from being published.  When asked if Beijing knew 
Zong was the author, Liu said, "yes, but what are you going 
to do to an old man?" 
 
¶5. (C) Initially, Zhao's children tried to dissuade Zong from 
publishing the manuscript, arguing that it went against 
Zhao's wishes.  Zhao's son-in-law purportedly witnessed a 
heated discussion between the two friends in which Zhao told 
Zong not to publish the manuscript, said Liu.  However, after 
Zhao's death last January, his family asked Bao Tong, Zhao's 
trusted former aide, about the matter.  Bao interpreted 
Zhao's words to mean that he did not want the manuscript to 
be published until after his death.  Bao agreed to edit the 
book, but Liu said that his father, who is under house 
arrest, was never able to get a copy of the elusive 
manuscript. 
 
Ching Cheong 
------------ 
 
 
HONG KONG 00002054  002.3 OF 002 
 
 
¶6. (C) Last summer, the wife of detained journalist Ching 
Cheong, claimed that her husband had been lured to China to 
retrieve a sensitive manuscript on Zhao.  Zong recently 
confirmed that Ching had contacted him through a middle man 
to obtain the rights to his book.  However, he defiantly 
denied that his manuscript was linked to Ching's arrest 
saying, "Ching's arrest was none of my business because there 
are no state secrets in my book."  Liu recounted that after 
Ching was detained last April, he helped Ching's wife contact 
the "Washington Post" to publicize her husband's case.  At 
the time, he had hoped that the publicity would generate 
enough international pressure on China that it would force 
Beijing to release Ching and would simultaneously create a 
buzz about Zong's manuscript.  Unfortunately, said Liu, Ching 
remains in jail and the Hong Kong newspapers have prematurely 
published an unedited and unauthorized version of Zong's 
manuscript.  The advance appearance in the Hong Kong media of 
material from the manuscript had weakened publishers' 
interest in the manuscript, concluded Liu. 
Cunningham