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Chen Weili, the elder daughter of Deng Xiaoping's arch-rival Chen Yun. Photo: SCMP

Revolutionary's daughter backs Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-graft drive

Chen Yun's offspring voices support for campaign in move analysts say is designed to show united front by second-generation Reds

The elder daughter of Deng Xiaoping's arch-rival Chen Yun has voiced her support for President Xi Jinping's corruption crackdown, amid talk of the campaign meeting strong opposition from some late revolutionaries' children.

"We strongly support the anti-corruption campaign. The Communist Party should not loosen discipline, and power should be supervised," Chen Weili told China Youth News Net ahead of her late father's 120th birthday this Saturday.

ran a commemorative article on the late party elder's views on fighting graft and building up the party last week. Chen Yun, seen as the pioneer of the party's watchdog, was the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection's first secretary from 1978 to 1987.

Both news portal and daily come under the Communist Youth League.

"Xi is [implementing the anti-graft drive] to secure the party rule. The party rule will end otherwise," Chen Weili said.

She recalled how her father taught her to lead a clean, simple life. Revolutionaries' children, or "second-generation Reds", should not be entitled to political privileges, she said.

In one of Chen Yun's speeches, he urged CCDI officials to equip themselves with "a spirit of the five no-fears" - they should not fear being beheaded, jailed, forced to divorce their spouse, or the loss of their party membership or positions.

He also warned his family to beware of plots of vengeance against them as his anti-graft drive had caused damage to some, his daughter recalled.

Beijing-based political commentator Zhang Lifan , formerly with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said Chen Weili's public support for Xi suggested that his corruption crackdown might not have received the party's full support.

"The articles are designed to show the public that the 'second-generation Reds' are united behind Xi as his campaign might have met strong opposition from the 'princeling' faction," he said.

Xi is himself considered a princeling and a second-generation Red. His late father Xi Zhongxun helped set up the Yanan revolutionary stronghold in the 1930s.

But the president's high-profile crusade against corruption has seen a string of top officials, including former Politburo member and Chongqing party chief Bo Xilai , former Politburo standing committee member and security tsar Zhou Yongkang , and former top general Xu Caihou fall to the campaign.

Meanwhile, a new commentary posted on the CCDI's website urged the graft-busters to speed up their corruption investigations and to leave the criminal probes to the prosecutors.

The party watchdog holds absolute power in cases related to corruption among officials, and they often handle the entire investigation process, leaving the courts to go through the trials only as a formality.

The article called on CCDI officials to change their mindset of "having to get everything done before sending them to court".

"We should not confuse party discipline with law," it said.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Revolutionary's daughter backs anti-graft drive
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