Deng Pufang () (born 16 April 1944) is the eldest son of former Chinese Vice Premier

Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. Aft ...

.Pearson, Veronica. Royal College of Psychiatrists. 995(1995). RCPsych Publications. . pg 88 He is mostly known for being injured by the Red Guards and becoming a

paraplegic Paraplegia, or paraparesis, is an impairment in motor or sensory function of the lower extremities. The word comes from Ionic Greek () "half-stricken". It is usually caused by spinal cord injury or a congenital condition that affects the neura ...

. He has since dedicated his life to improving the rights of people with disabilities.

Biography

Deng Pufang was born to

and Zhuo Lin, his third wife, in

Zuoquan Zuoquan County () is a county in the east of Shanxi Province of China, bordering Hebei Province to the east. It is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Jinzhong. After Communist general Zuo Quan was killed in action during Wo ...

, Jinzhong,

Shanxi Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-leve ...

. He is considered a member of the Crown Prince Party.

Paralyzing injury

During the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

, Deng Xiaoping and his family were targeted by

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...

. He was branded as a

capitalist roader In anti-capitalist Mao Zedong thought, a capitalist roader (; also ) is a person or group who demonstrates a marked tendency to bow to pressure from bourgeois forces and subsequently attempts to pull the Revolution in a capitalist direction. If al ...

. In one session, he was forced to kneel to the ground with his arm stretched out behind him and over his head. His family watched as the students forced him to confess to

capitalist Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit. Central characteristics of capitalism include capital accumulation, competitive markets, price system, private ...

ways of thinking.Stewart, Whitney. (2001). Deng Xiaoping: Leader in a Changing China. Twenty-First Century Books. pg 72 Mao's Red Guards then imprisoned Deng Pufang. He was tortured and thrown out of the window of a three-story building at

Peking University Peking University (PKU; ) is a public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. Peking University was established as the Imperial University of Peking in 1898 when it received its royal charte ...

in 1968, but some sources claimed he may have fallen or jumped out of the window himself. His back broken, he was rushed to the hospital, but was denied admission. By the time he reached another clinic, he was paralyzed. He remains a

, using a wheelchair. With regard to his views on the Cultural Revolution, Deng Pufang once said, "The generation of the Cultural Revolution is in no sense a lost generation, as is often said. Quite to the contrary. All those who passed through that testing have been toughened. These people think a great deal, and have their own ideas. They are firm in their convictions, and show initiative. To my way of thinking this generation represents a trump card for China and for the reforms which they have set in motion."

Post-injury work

In 1984 Deng Pufang established the China Welfare Fund for the Disabled. Then, he founded and became the chairman of the

China Disabled Persons' Federation The China Disabled Persons' Federation, also known as the CDPF, is a people's organization for individuals with disability in China established in Beijing, China in March 1988, aiming to represent and safeguard the rights and interests of disable ...

in 1988. In 1987, he was the prime mover behind a national survey for people with disabilities. In 1990, he led the formation of the Chinese Rehabilitation and Research Association for the Mentally Disabled. In 1991, legislation was passed to recognize

mental illness A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitt ...

as a disability. He was awarded the United Nations Human Rights Prize in December 2003 for his work in protecting the rights of individuals with disability in China. The

International Paralympic Committee The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and func ...

awarded Deng the Paralympic Order at their November 2005 meeting in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

.It was the first year the award was offered to one recipient only; in the past, gold, silver, and bronze medals were awarded. Deng also helped organize the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

as the executive president of the Beijing Organizing Committee.Official Website of the Beijing Olympics
"

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deng, Pufang 1944 births Living people Chinese disability rights activists Chinese torture victims Politicians from Jinzhong Chinese politicians with disabilities Politicians with paraplegia People's Republic of China politicians from Shanxi Vice Chairpersons of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Victims of the Cultural Revolution Deng Xiaoping family Recipients of the Olympic Order Chinese Communist Party politicians from Shanxi Chinese politicians of Hakka descent Children of national leaders of China