GOVERNMENT AND ECONOMY TODAY China

The End of China’s Dynasties By the mid 1800’s, China’s population had more than tripled. Food became scarce- supply could not meet demand Food shortages, famine and war overwhelmed the Qing Dynasty and contributed to the end of the dynasties

Opium War The Qing Dynasty faced turmoil in the 1700’s because of the drug, opium. China tried to prohibit the sale of opium in their country, but were not successful. Britain smuggled opium from India to China and used it instead of money to buy Chinese goods. This harmed China’s economy. Why do you think that is? China seized control of the opium Britain had stored and Britain attacked the port where it was stored. Britain’s military was superior to China’s weak Qing rule. The result was the Opium War and it lasted from 1839 until 1842 and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Nanking. The treaty required China to pay Great Britain money and hand over Hong Kong to British control to allow British traders into Chinese ports.

Nationalism in China Nationalism, or a sense of pride, moved the Chinese to take control of their country. They were angered by the Treaty of Nanking. The Taiping Rebellion was the response to the Treaty of Nanking. Peasants demanded equality for women, wanted an end to private property and wanted surplus harvests given to the neediest. The Chinese military crushed the rebellion in 1868 The Boxer Rebellion was named for a rebel group who hoped to defeat the Qing Dynasty and force foreigners out of China. They wanted a China free of foreigners and dynasties. However, Foreign troops joined together to defeat the Boxers but China’s Qing government was left in turmoil.

China as a Republic In 1911, Sun Yat-sen founded the Chinese Nationalist Party and overthrew the Qing dynasty in Yat sen was the first provisional president and China struggled with establishing China as a Repulic. The Chinese Communist party also formed and the two parties fought for control of China. Before becoming communist, the Chinese government improved transportation, provided education to more people and encouraged industry. However the lives of peasants and workers were not improved and many turned to the communist party for help. Where else have we seen similar circumstances?

Mao Zedong As the first communist chairman of China, Mao Zedong implemented reforms such as division of land and establishing collective farms. In 1958 Mao launched a program called the Great Leap Forward to speed economic development. It did the opposite: Within a year China’s economy was shattered by the collective farms. Poor agricultural production, droughts and floods destroyed crops. 20 million people starved and millions died of disease. China abandoned the Great Leap Forward.

Mao Zedong and the Cultural Revolution After the Great Leap Forward failed, Mao feared the people would want to make China a capitalist country. In 1966 he launched the Cultural Revolution to remove opposition to the Communist Party. The Red Guard were Mao supporters who sought out and punished people who spoke against Mao’s principles or who had contact with the West. China’s economy weakened, health care and transportation were unavailable and many began to call for reform. The Cultural Revolution ended with the death of Mao in 1976.

China’s Government Today Deng Ziaoping replaced Mao and established diplomatic relations with the United States. China made reforms such as allowing farmers to own land, releasing political prisoners and reducing to power of the police force. However, the government was not willing to give up any of it’s basic control. The Chinese Communist Party holds the power in China and controls what happens locally. The government only allows churches and temples that are closely linked to the party to operate.

Human Rights in China China’s government Has a history of repressing Human rights. In 1989, the military denied Freedom of speech when Protesters called for democracy. Tiananmen Square in Beijing Was the location of weeks of Protests. The military killed Hundreds and wounded many More to end the protests. With televised accounts, the world Cried out against China and her Brutality.

China’s Mixed Economy Although China is a communist country with the government controls most of its economy. It owns all financial institutions and larger industrial firms. It also sets prices on goods and plans the quantity of goods each worker should produce. However, the United states regularly purchases goods made in China. China has placed emphasis on improving industry and has become one of the largest cotton and metal producers. Many still farm using outdated equipment but China is still the world’s largest producer of rice and is a major source of wheat, corn, soybeans peanuts, cotton and tobacco. With an emphasis on industry, China has allowed some privatization of businesses so is considered to have a mixed economy.

Hong Kong As stated earlier, the control of Hong Kong went to the British after the Opium Wars. In 1997 Hong Kong reverted back to the control of China. However, the city maintains a free market economy and is one of the most successful examples of capitalist economies in the world.

Economy of Hong Kong