What Impact Did Mao Have On The Chinese People Since 1949 In The Following Areas: Economic, Social And Political?
What Impact Did Mao Have On The Chinese People Since 1949 In The Following Areas: Economic, Social And Political?
INTRODUCTION
When Mao Zedong came to power he faced big problems. China had faced a century of weakness and exploitation by foreigners. There was no industry, which meant mass unemployment particularly in urban areas, there was a huge food shortage, the population was continuing to grow rapidly, it was growing by 14 million a year and after 50 years of fighting the country was in ruin and despair. Money no longer had any value and Mao had to make sure the government could rebuild the country and keep control of the people. When the communists came to power Mao had a new vision for China. On the 1st October 1949, Mao Zedong (When above the gate of heavenly peace, in Beijing, which was to become the capital once again) said,
"We announce the setting up of the peoples republic of China. Our nation will from now on enter the large family of peace loving and freedom loving nations of the world. It will work bravely to create its own civilisation and happiness and will at the same time promote world peace and freedom. Our nation will never again be insulted. We have stood up".
Officially the Peoples Republic of China was to be ruled by a coalition government made up of 14 different parties all of which were small compared to the communist party. Mao Zedong was to be the chairman of the People's Republic and Zou En lai the prime minister. In practise though all the power rested with the leadership of the communist party. Communist party officials (or Cadres) were put in charge at every level of Chinese society: in villages, in towns, in unions, in courts, in colleges, in radio stations, and in newspapers. This tight reign meant the people were often restricted in their actions and their beliefs.
POLITICAL
Officially the Peoples Republic Of China was a democracy, however, Mao had already pointed out,
"Democracy is practised by the people. The people enjoy the rights of freedom of speech, freedom to meet together, the right to form associations and so on. The right to vote only belongs to the people and not the reactionaries. There is democracy for the people and dictatorship for the reactionaries. This is the people's democratic dictatorship".
The reactionaries were the old landowners and the members of the Guomindang. It was the landlord classes that suffered the ...
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POLITICAL
Officially the Peoples Republic Of China was a democracy, however, Mao had already pointed out,
"Democracy is practised by the people. The people enjoy the rights of freedom of speech, freedom to meet together, the right to form associations and so on. The right to vote only belongs to the people and not the reactionaries. There is democracy for the people and dictatorship for the reactionaries. This is the people's democratic dictatorship".
The reactionaries were the old landowners and the members of the Guomindang. It was the landlord classes that suffered the most with the coming of the communism. A land revolution was taking pace in the countryside. The communist party needed to keep the support of the peasants. In 1950 Mao's government passed the agrarian reform law. In 1927 he had written:
"Local bullies and evil landowners have killed peasants without batting an eyelid. In view of these crimes how can anyone say that the peasants should not now rise and shoot one or two of them, and bring about a small-scale reign of terror in crushing these people?"
Peasants were encouraged to put their landlords and sometimes the richer peasants on trial in people's courts. Many landlords and sometimes their families - perhaps as many as one million - were executed. Others were sent to prison or to special camps to be re-educated. Those who had been good landlords were simply given a share of the land along with the peasants. The Peoples courts had destroyed the old landowning classes. The biggest threat inside China to the new Communist Government had been removed.
After China entered the Korean War, the initial changes in Chinese domestic policies gave way to a massive campaign against the "enemies of the state," actual and potential. These enemies consisted of "war criminals, traitors, bureaucratic capitalists, and counter revolutionaries." The campaign was combined with party-sponsored trials attended by huge numbers of people. The major targets in this drive were foreigners and Christian missionaries who were branded as United States agents at these mass trials. A reform campaign requiring self-criticisms and public confessions by university faculty members, scientists, and other professional workers was given wide publicity. Artists and writers were soon the objects of similar treatment for failing to heed Mao's words that culture and literature must reflect interests of the working people. These campaigns were accompanied in 1950 by the three anti's ("san fan") movement. It was directed against the evils of "corruption, waste, and bureaucracy"; its real aim was to eliminate any enemies of communism. It led to raids, public trials and even executions for those viewed as willing to harm and destroy the country " In the course of this campaign the party claimed to have uncovered a well-organized attempt by businessmen and industrialists to corrupt party and government officials, this led to businessmen being weeded out for punishment many just 'disappeared'. This charge was enlarged into an assault on the bourgeoisie as a whole. The number of people affected by the various reform campaigns was estimated as millions. Chow Qingli the wife of a businessman in Shanghai tells us
"A wave of attacks against enemies of the revolution broke out over the city of Shanghai. During the month of April alone, there were countless police raids as well as huge public trials. When these ended the newspaper published lists of those who were to be executed. Hundreds were shot that same afternoon on the golf course to the west of Shanghai. In 1953 a new stage in the liberation brought all private businesses under government control. When my husbands company was taken over he continued to hold the post of manager, under the eye of a trade unionist. A process of 're-education' always followed changes of this sort. This meant compulsory meetings two or three times a week. People were made to criticise themselves and the things they had done in the past, and criticise each other as well."
This idea of ridding the country of opposition was so that china could concentrate on getting more developed and powerful like the west. Chinese leaders wanted china to develop industrially like the west but not develop the social, moral and political attitudes. It was this fear that led to the massive 're-education' programme, teaching the Chinese people how to live and think the communist way. This was done by teaching Marxism in schools and colleges, as well as in the 're-education' group's, the media through careful propaganda and by word of mouth. People who spoke out publicly against the new order could find themselves in real trouble. The people most difficult to convert were the intellectuals - doctors, teachers, writers etc. Many of who had lost their wealth and status; they wished to be treated with greater respect. Mao set about getting rid of these first.
Like in Nazi Germany, propaganda was a major tool in persuading the people, by 1951 Mao had over 1.5 propagandists 10% of which dominated each work place. Businessmen had loudspeakers placed outside their houses telling them of the crimes they committed, they were denounced at public meetings and sent to work in the fields with peasants to learn from their ways, many who could not accept the new order were driven out from the country. When the five anti's campaign began it concentrated on tax evasion, bribery, fraud, spying, and stealing of state assets. The guilty were sent for 're-education'. Politically the communists felt that china was stabilizing now that the evil vices had been removed.
In 1956 Mao decided to allow people to let of steam by saying what they wanted about the communist party, its policies and its leaders. He said
"It is only by using discussion, criticism and reasoning that we can really foster correct ideas, overcome wrong ideas and really settle issues."
Putting it another way, he quoted from ancient Chinese history saying
"Let a hundred flowers bloom"
Meaning that free speech and argument were healthy and should be encouraged. For a while people spoke more freely than Mao would have liked. People were not just complaining about leaders and policies they were challenging the ideals of communism. In June 1957 Mao Zedong cracked down on his critics. Many were arrested and sent away to camps in the countryside for 'thought reform' others were sacked from their jobs. People were forbidden to speak freely and the press were once again censored. The 'Hundred Flowers' withered as rapidly as they had bloomed. Many people believed the real reason for the Hundred Flower Campaign, was for Mao to bait his enemies in to showing themselves, where they could be arrested.