In a book titled ‘China's Best Actor: Wen Jiabao’, the dissident writer criticises China’s prime minister and challenges the government. Putting “me in jail because of my book [. . .] would ruin the image of an open-minded administration” so dear to China’s leaders.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews/Agencies) – A Chinese dissident has written a critical book about Wen Jiabao, but has also asked him not to have him arrested. For him, this is the only way the prime minister can show that he is truly “open-minded”. Having thrown down the gauntlet, Yu Jie (pictured) now only has to wait a few days to see if he will remain free.

Titled China's Best Actor: Wen Jiabao, the book is set to go on sale in Hong Kong on 16 August. Police in Beijing have already issued a warning last month that he and his publisher would be jailed if the publication went ahead.

The publisher, Bao Pu of New Century Press, is the son of Bao Tong, a historic dissident under house arrest for the past decade who was personal secretary and friend to the late Communist Party Secretary Zhao Zhiyang. A first run should reach 5,000 copies.

Rejecting the hero label, Yu said, “I am concerned about my personal safety, of course [. . .] but the authorities have banned me from publishing on the mainland since 2004”. For this reason, “I don't want my scant freedom to publish in Hong Kong to also be lost.”

Nevertheless, "If the central leadership decides to put me in jail because of my book,” he explained, “it would ruin the image of an open-minded administration that both President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen have pulled out all stops to build up over the past eight years."

Beijing police appears unconcerned by Yu’s logic. On 5 July, the secret police picked him up and interrogated him for four and half hours, explaining to him that Wen was “not a normal citizen”, that any book criticising him could have "grave consequences" because it would endanger "the ruling power and the interests of the nation".

Indeed, Yu was told that he could end up like Liu Xiaobo, the writer and co-author of Charter 08 who was sentenced to several years in prison for his trouble.

Yu’s book also includes a collection of articles he wrote over the years that have already appeared in Hong Kong, Taiwan and elsewhere.

In one article, he explains why he considers Wen an “actor”. "Hu has a personality that is impersonal and cold; he prefers to give orders behind the scenes because he is not good at performing in public," Yu wrote. In addition, "Wen's character fills the gap because he likes going down to coal mines, visiting farmers and expressing emotions in public."

Given his propensity to cry and show emotions in public, the prime minister was given the sobriquet “Grandpa Wen”.

However, behind all the “acting” stands a clever opportunist able to jump on the winning horse and stay on top, Yu said.

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