The Perpetrator and the Victim: The Dual Identity Mystery of Xi Jinping and His Father

In September 1967, Xi Zhongxun was criticised at Northwest Agricultural University (Wikipedia).

[People News] May 24 marks the 23rd anniversary of the death of Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhongxun, a prominent figure in the Chinese Communist Party. Scholars have noted that while Xi Zhongxun may seem like a reformist within the Party, he was, in fact, deeply loyal to it, a sentiment that Xi Jinping has inherited and continued. Despite his father's brutal persecution by the Communist Party, Xi Jinping remains steadfastly loyal to the organisation. It has been observed by scholars that within the brutal internal struggles of the Communist Party, its leaders often embody dual identities, acting as both perpetrators and victims.

On May 26, The Wall Street Journal quoted historian Joseph Torigian, who is set to publish an English biography of Xi Zhongxun titled 'The Party's Interests Above All.' He remarked, 'Some may wonder why Xi Jinping is so loyal to an organisation that once persecuted his father, but perhaps a more pertinent question is—how could he betray a party for which his father sacrificed everything?'

Since taking office in 2012, Xi Jinping has implemented dictatorial measures, tightened control over power, and thoroughly suppressed all dissenting voices in Chinese society. His authoritarian rule has also faced a growing wave of anti-Xi sentiment from the grassroots level. Torigian argues that Xi Jinping's iron-fisted governance is a continuation of his father Xi Zhongxun's principle of 'absolute loyalty to the Party.'

Xi Zhongxun joined the Communist Party in his youth. While he appeared to hold progressive views after the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Torijian revealed a more brutal side of Xi Zhongxun in his book. During the Yan'an Rectification Movement from 1942 to 1945, Xi Zhongxun spearheaded the campaign to 'actively hunt down spies,' which led to numerous wrongful convictions. In the early 1950s, during the anti-rightist movement, he even remarked, 'The more people we kill, the more the bad guys are afraid.'

It is widely recognised that despite Xi Zhongxun's unwavering loyalty to the Communist Party and Mao Zedong, his family faced severe persecution during the Cultural Revolution. The Xi family was subjected to searches, and both Xi Zhongxun and his wife were publicly humiliated. One of Xi Jinping's sisters lost her life amid the chaos, and Xi Jinping's mother, Qi Xin, even denounced him during a struggle session. Subsequently, Xi Jinping responded to Mao Zedong's call to 'learn from the countryside' by spending seven years in rural areas.

Qi Xin recalled that in the cave dwelling where Xi Zhongxun lived in Yan'an, there was a handwritten inscription from Mao Zedong that stated: 'The interests of the party come first.' Analysts suggest that Xi Jinping learned at least one important lesson from his father: regardless of how the party treats you, it is essential to maintain faith in the party.

Professor Song Yongyi, a Chinese scholar in the United States who studies the Cultural Revolution, mentioned in an interview with BBC Chinese that high-ranking leaders within the Communist Party often embody both victim and perpetrator roles; they have also played a part in the political movements that ultimately led to their own persecution and demise.

This pattern is not limited to the Xi father and son; throughout the history of the Communist Party, many high-ranking leaders have found themselves as both victims and perpetrators in the intense struggles for power.

Liu Shaoqi, who once served as the Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party, was overthrown just months after the Cultural Revolution began and tragically died, being cremated under the anonymous name 'Liu Weihuang' with his occupation listed as 'unemployed.' Liu Shaoqi is undoubtedly a victim of the Cultural Revolution. However, he had voted in favor of several documents and directives that initiated the Cultural Revolution. Professor Song Yongyi asserts that Liu Shaoqi bears undeniable leadership responsibility for the Cultural Revolution.

The Great Leap Forward represents an unprecedented tragedy in Chinese history, leading to at least thirty million abnormal deaths in just three years. Analysts argue that Liu Shaoqi was not merely a passive executor of the Great Leap Forward but also a 'promoter.' He holds an unavoidable and inescapable responsibility for the calamities caused by this campaign.

Moreover, Liu Shaoqi conducted severe purges against several prominent figures, including Peng Dehuai, the first Minister of National Defense and one of the ten marshals, Gao Gang, who served as Vice Chairman of the Central People's Government established prior to the founding of the People's Republic of China, and Rao Shushi, the former First Secretary of the East China Bureau of the Communist Party.

Ms. He Qinglian, a Chinese economist and sociologist residing in the United States, has commented that 'this system, which merges the party and state power machinery, inevitably necessitates the implementation of maximum centralization within the ruling group, concentrating all power in the hands of a few or even a single central figure, which requires ongoing internal purges to eliminate obstacles within the party.' She believes that Xi Jinping is a thorough political pragmatist, meaning that as long as he can uphold the Communist Party's rule, he is likely to adopt any necessary measures.

Steve Tsang, the director of the China Research Center at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, remarked that examining Xi Jinping's father 'can help us understand how Xi Jinping came to recognize the brutal nature of high-level politics within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the means that must be employed to attain power.'

The book 'Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party' reveals that, similar to other communist nations around the world, the CCP not only engages in mass killings of its citizens but also carries out bloody purges within its own ranks. Its methods are exceedingly brutal, with one of the goals being to eliminate those dissidents whose 'humanity' has triumphed over 'partisanship.' The CCP requires not only the intimidation of the populace but also the intimidation of its own members, in order to establish an 'indestructible fortress of combat.'