Mao´s domestic policy The Land Reform, FYP´s and Industry

Collectivisation, the first Five year plan, Campaigns agaist the landlords: Together with the land reform, the peasants were supposed to lead the land reform by themselves ” Dig the bitter roots, vomit the bitter waters” Redistribution of the land: all the people owned as much as the poorest peasant Co-operatives to be established; Mao encouraged the peasants to work together instead of buying their own tiny pieces of land

Public trials: land lords and enemies of the state were executed From 1954 the party encouraged the peasants to even closer collaboration / APC- agricultural producers co-operatives to be established - poor harvests and food riots : the plan was suspended for a year and came into action in 1955 ( Liu Shaoqi opposed, Mao in charge) * See table, p.147

Collectivisation and Great Leap Forward, 1958 The second five year plan to be launched; larger communes to be established, no private farming any more.. Campaigns like ” the four pests campaign”, Lysenkoism → communal farming failed to work, no knowledge on farming on a large communal scale→ famine

Industry * nationalization straight after the establishment of PRC - in % heavy industry was still privately owned - experts & loans from the USSR The first five year plan, the Soviet influence, the same model to be followed - The emphasis on state-directed growth of heavy industry: coal, steel and petro-chemicals - New industrial areas like Manchuria, Lanzhou - Roads and Railways were built - Urbanisation - A considerable degree of success in stimulating the production!

The First Five Year Plan, : economy performance 1952Index of national income , , , , ,1

G.L.F, 1958 onwards Why? - Final consolidation of power ( less bureaucracy needed within the party: ”the Yanan sprit”) - Independence from the USSR ( loans and experts..) - the Hundred Flowers Campaign had revealed his enemies; a failure to some extent - China should be walking on two legs; agriculture and industry - Ideological disagreements; no compromise should be made with the capitalist thought ( pay differentials etc)

The role of the Cadres Development of rural communes ( Henan experiment) Emphasis on heavy industry ( state-owned enterprises, subsidies, fixed rates of pay, output targets), surplus to the state - production of metals locally; 90 million peasants forced into backyard industrial projects; smelting of crude steel ( medals, pots and pans, tools to be smelted)

Mao´s economic programme; A success? See table, p.151 Source A, p.160, Source B, p.161 Rural industrialisation spread and China’s infrastructure was developed BUT e.g. the quality of steel was so poor that is could not be used for the industrial purposes ( 1% was usable) - Famine in the countryside ( surplus given to the state, exported to the USSR.. - Poor government planning, climate conditions made the situation ever worse

Result Between 20 and 50 million people died because of the G.L.F At the Lushan Conference in 1959 Peng Dehuai openly attacked Mao because of the catastrophy→ he was dismissed Result: Mao withdrew from the office from 1959: Liu Shaoqi and Deng Xiaoping to deal with the crisis * grain from Australia and Canada * central planning, pay differentials brought back, urban workers to the countryside

Liu Shaoqi´s and Deng Xiaoping´s economic recovery In 1961 communes reorganised; peasants´had more time to work in the fields instead of unnecessary industrial work Small private farms reintroduced Lack of industrial experts ( overall production fell in the 1960´s) BUT the discovery of new oil and gas fields helped the revival Agricultural production revived in five years The programme to be attacked by Mao quite soon; the cultural revolution about to begin…