Student protestors, representing the People’s Republic of China, calling for democratic reforms within the government led to the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The government sent tanks, soldiers and police to Beijing to arrest those who appeared to be mainly involved. When the protestors being arrested fought back, the government, to stop the protests, used force. Sources vary on how many people died during the Massacre; estimates vary between two hundred and three thousand. Short-term effects of the Massacre are central. China lost the rights to 1992 Olympics, destroying to the potential economy surge that would have occurred. Tourism in China fell because the tyranny of the Communist government was now known. Freedom of speech was restricted. Party members who had publicly sympathised with the PRC were purged and placed under house arrest. There are many long-term effects of the Massacre. The Party lost a notable proportion of the studying intellectuals, some of whom had been studying democracy. The loss of these intellectuals caused a higher ratio of labour workers in the employment market. This problem will continue until the current generation retire. The press were in China for the Olympics bid and focused on the Massacre reporting back the atrocities of the CCP to the West. China has a dubious human rights record now and in the past damaging their chances of hosting any international event.
Mao’s death in 1976 left a large political vacuum that Deng had to fill. He created a revolution modernising China. This he did without denouncing Mao as he was a popular leader. In the short-term Deng’s reforms had little effect and were for the long-term good of China. China was a one-party state and Deng’s Revolution only emphasised this fact. Ultimately this led to the Tiananmen Square Massacre because the lack of democracy had been highlighted. In the long-term China was affected through its economy, agriculture and industry. Deng changed China’s current economy to the capitalist ‘free market’, and as a result China’s economy became stable. Overall progress was achieved in agriculture. A new law meant that peasants could sell produce for private profit, but many did not take advantage of this, but all in all, output rose and poverty decreased. Industry changed subtly. The government provided workers with a job for life. Major advances were not made but the economy continued to grow.
The least significant event that I have studied out of the previous paragraphs is the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Its long-term effects were minimal. Before the Massacre China’s human-rights record was dubious. Previously, particularly in the Communist reign, the government had abused its power to squash ideas of non-conformists and for resorted to brute force and violence. The Tiananmen Square Massacre did not damage China’s image drastically in the long-term. Even losing the Olympics had little effect on the Government. Deng’s reforms stabilised the economy and the lack of tourism the Games would have generated would not have affected it drastically. It is fair to say previous events led to the Massacre.
I think that the Long March was the next most significant event. The Long March only mainly affected the CCP by helping spread the word, which resulted in them coming into power. If the Long March had not taken place the Communists may have found another way to spread Communist teachings. When Mao was in power he spread his teachings through various different medium, such as ‘The Little Red Book’, meetings and announcements. The Long March would not have been the only way that the CCP had come into power and manipulated the opinions of the party via propaganda. When evaluating the significance I must also bear in mind that if the 1911 Revolution had not occurred then the Long March would not have happened.
I feel that Deng’s Revolution was the second most significant event in China, in relation to the others I have studied. Deng enabled China to modernise and increase the standard of living for all through various outlets. It is very significant because of the great effect that it had on the people. This may still have occurred if the Communists were not in power and therefore makes it more significant than the Long March, and was not affected by the Tiananmen Square Massacre as it occurred before.
The most significant event is therefore the 1911 Revolution. I feel that this is the most significant because of the great affect that it had on the country. The 1911 Revolution opened China up to different political options and left open a gateway towards a better way of life for all. Without the 1911 Revolution none of the other events would have occurred and the country may still be under imperial reign to this day.
