Popular culture cited in news conference on Party discipline

China's corruption busters used popular culture examples on Friday in outlining how discipline for errant Party members could be harsher than that required by the Chinese law.

The remarks about China's ongoing anti-graft campaign were made at a news conference by Xiao Pei, deputy minister of supervision, and Wu Yuliang, deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China.

Xiao cited the popular movie Mr Six to distinguish Party discipline from national laws. Mr Six, directed by Guan Hu and starring director-actor Feng Xiaogang, has won acclaim for its strong depiction of old Beijing culture and flavor and earned box office revenue of more than 820 million yuan ($124.5 million) as of Sunday.

"I read a magazine on the movie this morning. The most impressive part was the antagonist reported to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, instead of the police,"Xiao said. "In this movie, the difference between disciplinary regulations and laws was clearly explained. The laws govern all matters that have been reported to the police and disciplinary regulations rule those reported to the CCDI."

Xiao said all citizens must follow national laws and all Party members should comply with disciplinary regulations, which may, in fact, be harsher.

Wu cited the popular TV series Legend of Miyue, which hearkens back to the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). He cited a story of a neighbor's incorrect suspicions about a stolen ax.

"President Xi Jinping said we are not playing the House of Cards and we aren't using the anti-corruption campaign as a method of political purging. The CCDI has solid evidence regarding all who have been disciplined,"Wu said.

House of Cards is a US streaming series on Netflix that charts the intrigue and treachery of a power hungry politician. Xi made the joke about the show in an appearance in Seattle in September.

Friday's news conference was organized by the State Council Information Office to release information and policies about the sixth plenary meeting of the CCDI.