Deng Xiaoping's son Deng Pufang

Many people do know that former Chinese paramount leader Deng Xiaoping's eldest son was pushed out of a building during the Cultural Revolution. Subsequently, Deng Pufang became paralyzed from the waist down, and had to be confined to a wheelchair for life.

Unfortunate for him, but a boon for the countless handicapped people in the country.

In interviews with many handicapped associations a few years ago, one of the most common refrain I heard was that "it was a good thing that Deng Pufang is also handicapped," as this had raised awareness of the plight of, as well as highlighted the difficulties and discrimination faced by the handicapped.

Having the younger Deng as a patron (especially as chairman of the All China Handicapped Federation) had also helped the country divert more resources, and put in place legislation that had subsequently improved the lives of the handicapped in general. But having said that, lots more of course, remains to be done.

But here, it is at least a clear case of putting one's position as a "princeling" to good use.