When Xi Jinping became leader of the Chinese Communist party a little more than a year ago, he made the fight against corruption a central theme of his leadership. Over the past year China has seen the detention of dozens of top officials on suspicion of financial improprieties. More than 180,000 people have been punished for corruption. Mr Xi has left little doubt that he believes unchecked graft threatens the future of the Chinese Communist party. Yet two events this week raise doubts about how sincere his drive really is.

First, there is the trial of Xu Zhiyong, a human rights lawyer, which has started in Beijing. Mr Xu is part of a loose group of civic activists who are campaigning for rules requiring government officials to disclose their financial assets. The demands he is making appear to be perfectly in line with the leadership’s anti-corruption drive. But he is now on trial for “gathering crowds to disrupt public order” – suggesting that Mr Xi’s campaign has its limits.

The second event was publication of a report by a Washington- based organisation called the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The report claims that more than a dozen family members of China’s top political and military leaders are making use of offshore companies based in the British Virgin Islands.