CCTV+: Father's influence on Xi in people-centered philosophy

BEIJING, June 18, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — A personal letter written by Chinese President Xi Jinping to his father Xi Zhongxun (1913-2002) in 2001 revealed how his father’s words and deeds run deep in Xi Jinping’s outlook on thrifty life, hard work and state governance, especially his people-centered philosophy.

On Oct 15, 2001, the 88th birthday of Xi Zhongxun, the Xi family had a rare reunion. Xi Jinping, then governor of east China’s Fujian Province, was unable to attend the family event due to work commitments. The apologetic son wrote a letter of gratitude to his father.

In the letter, he spoke fondly of his everlasting affection for his parents and of the many noble qualities he learned from his father.

Xi Zhongxun was one of the first-generation central leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC). He was always a man for the people.

When he became the Party chief of Suide County, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, in 1943, Xi Zhongxun immediately required local officials to abstain from complacency and solidly serve the 520,000 local residents.

When Xi Zhongxun arrived in south China’s Guangdong to be the provincial Party chief in 1978, he worked day and night and visited 23 counties under the scorching sun.

On Oct 1, 1999, Xi Zhongxun, then 86, watched a grand military parade and a mass pageantry on the Tian’anmen Rostrum marking the 50th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. He had a friendly conversation with the central leadership and said “We should never forget that the country is the people, the people are the country.”

“Like a willing ox, you worked hard in silence for the Chinese people. Your deeds inspired me to devote my life to the cause of serving the people and paying back my splendid motherland and my fellow people,” Xi Jinping wrote in the letter.

Xi Zhongxun served the country throughout his life and his fine family tradition is like a mirror, a benchmark, and a textbook. As he said to his children, “I have not left you any wealth, but a good reputation.”