Xi cited in China's media as health rumours fly

Xi Jinping has made his first public communication in nearly two weeks, state media said Thursday, amid swirling speculation about the whereabouts of China's leader-in-waiting.

Vice President Xi has not been seen in public for 12 days and has cancelled meetings with four foreign dignitaries including US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, giving rise to intense speculation about his health.

His unexplained disappearance has come at a highly sensitive time for China, which is gearing up for a generational handover of power that has already been marred by two major political scandals involving senior communist officials.

But on Thursday, state media said he had "expressed condolences on the death of old party comrade Huang Rong", who died on September 6 -- a day after Xi missed a planned meeting with Clinton.

The report in the Guangxi Daily newspaper -- mouthpiece of the Communist Party committee in China's southern Guangxi region -- marked the first public communication by Xi since he delivered a speech on September 1.

Xi has been widely tipped to succeed President Hu Jintao as leader of the ruling Communist Party at a crucial meeting that is expected to be held some time next month, before taking over as head of state in March.

China's government has so far given no explanation for his absence, refusing to answer repeated questions from foreign media.

Xi's disappearance from public view has attracted global attention, but China's tightly controlled state-run media has completely ignored the issue, focusing instead on a row over Japan's purchase of the disputed Diaoyu islands, known in Japan as the Senkaku islands.

Experts on Chinese politics say he is likely suffering from a relatively minor health complaint, as anything more serious would have prevented President Hu from leaving the country to take part in last week's APEC summit.

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