Under Xi, the party’s traditionally suspicious stance against politically active or outspoken businessmen has worsened. Wang Gongquan, a former venture capitalist who financed the defense of more liberal social and political policies, was one of the first high-profile individuals arrested after Xi came to power. Ren Zhiqiang, a retired property tycoon, was sentenced last year to 18 years in prison after repeatedly criticizing Xi’s policies, including the government’s mismanagement in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak.
In private chat rooms and behind closed doors, some people ask what signal Beijing is sending to the private sector by arresting Sun. Frank and generous, Mr. Sun is, in a way, the model of the civic entrepreneur that the party extols . He built a city – Dawu City – around his company’s campus in rural Hebei province, complete with a 1,000-bed hospital.
“My dream,” he said once, “is to build a modern city in the countryside.”
Mr. Sun, 66, was born in Xushui, Hebei Province, about a two-hour drive south of Beijing. He joined the People’s Liberation Army after graduating from high school. He left the army eight years later and returned to his hometown to work at the state-owned Agricultural Bank of China.
A curious and restless soul, he studied law at college and took courses in Chinese literature in his spare time. In 1985, he left his bank job and started a business with 1,000 chickens and 50 pigs. His company, Dawu Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Group, now employs about 9,000 people, many from nearby villages.
As his business grew, Sun sought out liberal intellectuals in Beijing. In the spring of 2003, he was becoming a voice in defense of the rights of farmers and entrepreneurs, giving lectures at major Chinese universities.
After angering the authorities, he was arrested on charges of illegal fundraising. His new friends jumped to his defense. The lawyers argued that the law he was accused of violating was written in a way that gave authorities ample freedom to accuse businessmen who fell out of favor.
Liu Xiaobo, the human rights activist who later became a Nobel Peace Prize laureate and who died in prison in 2017, then explained that Mr. Sun “represents a tremendous challenge for the current system”. As a businessman, Mr. Liu wrote, Mr. Sun despised bribery, had the financial resources to act independently and had the courage to speak openly and demand political reform.