Xi Jinping -- general secretary of the Chinese Communist party and China's president -- has been very busy this week, hosting a likely ally in Africa and leaders from the Arab world.
IMAGE: Tyrants meet! Xi and Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo at a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, May 28, 2024.
Obiang has ruled his country since August 1979 and Equatorial Guinea has recorded the worst human rights violations in Africa.
Xi's autocracy is well known -- if fresh evidence was needed, democracy activists were convicted by a court in Hong Kong on Thursday, May 30, for demanding greater democracy in the Chinese province. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Pool/Reuters
IMAGE: Xi and fellow autocrat, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, review a honour guard during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, May 29, 2024. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Pool/Reuters
IMAGE: Xi and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan -- whom Prime Minister Narendra D Modi calls a dear friend -- review a honour guard during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, China May 30, 2024. Photograph: Tingshu Wang/Pool/Reuters
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com