Presented by: Mengxin Zhu & Arielle Green 竺梦芯和绿阿莉尔呈现 China under Deng Xiaoping : Political changes, and their limits, culminating in Tiananmen Square Presented by: Mengxin Zhu & Arielle Green 竺梦芯和绿阿莉尔呈现

China Under Deng Xiaoping China’s democracy movement was subdued in 1978-79 when the economic reforms were being launched. As Deng consolidated his control of China, the call for political reform came to the fore again in the mid-1980s. pro-reform leaders: Zhao Ziyang was appointed premier, and Hu Yaobang CCP general secretary. Deng himself, satisfied with being the “power behind the throne,” never held a top position.

Political Change Deng had full control of the Party and the government by 1982 Deng began to separate the government from the Party Goal = to modernise China so it could compete with the West in consumer goods & industrial production At this point, Deng had full control of the Party and the government, by 1982 He began to separate the government from the Party Instead, he wanted to put in place policies which would differ from traditional communist ideologies Deng also wanted to make important changes so that China could compete with the West The goal he had in mind was to modernise China so it could compete with the West in consumer goods & industrial production Even though Deng wanted to put in place Western policies he was still a communist and made sure that the political system remained communist

Political Changes (cont’d) The economic changes led to conflicts within the Party There were three main power bases which were: Deng (pragmatists) Hua and Ye (military leader and the balancer) The leftist members worried that China's socialist goals would be lost by the new economic changes and the trade with the West Deng made it clear that China would remain socialist With economic development came a wish for political change At the time, political opinions being expressed differed drastically from those previously The economic changes led to conflicts within the Party There were three main power bases which were: Deng [dung] (pragmatists) [practical and focused on reaching a goal] Hua (hwah gwaw-fuhng) and Ye (military leader and the balancer) It was clear that at this time, China was going through time of relative freedom The leftist members worried that China's socialist goals would be lost by the new economic changes and the trade with the West Deng made it clear that China would remain socialist even though some of the new policies allowed more freedom, China was certainly not capitalist, instead Deng described it as a Chinese-style socialism The difficulty of the leadership was to keep their own culture while taking on board Western technology and managerial methods Many of those who had been sent to prison or to the countryside during the Cultural Revolution These people were former Red Guards and people who had missed out on education due to the Cultural Revolution Their militant expertise meant that they had good skills in organisation and collaboration, which helped the movement gain support, while simultaneously giving a voice to those who had been repressed during the Cultural Revolution These same people soon began to criticise Mao and the Gang of Four Deng supported this criticism since it was brought forth at a time when there was conflict within the Party Deng saw these people as potential allies for his principles

Political Changes (cont’d) Deng was loyal to the Communist party and a firm believer in the "dictatorship of the proletariat." Democracy wall people express opinion on the way China has progressed over past decade. freedom human rights self-determination

Pro-Democracy Groups Wei Jingsheng (Fifth Modernization) -democracy and -criticized Deng -15 years imprisonment for treason -Wall closed down Protests were stopped after that, and reforming communists were pushed underground once again.

China Opening Up Deng at the time was looking to increase his power within the politburo and the Central Committee His focus was on economic growth and the Four Modernizations Japan was China's main investor and the US was starting to increase its investment in China as well China was starting to open up to the outside world At this point in time, Deng was looking to increase his power within the politburo and the Central Committee His focus turned towards economic growth and the Four Modernizations Deng had come to realize that he was spending too much time and energy abroad trying to find new markets and attempting to align China with developing countries Japan was China's main investor and the US was starting to increase its investment in China as well While things were looking up, China began opening up to the outside world

Contradictions In the 1980's there were disagreements between the Party and the government due to contradictions Political liberalisation was supported however there was no place for bourgeois values The government allowed more freedom within the media In the 1980's there were disagreements between the Party and the government due to contradictions Political liberal-lisation was supported however there was no place for bourgeois (berchz-wah) values As a result, the government allowed more freedom within the media Now, stories which portrayed the negative aspects of Chinese life, could be published freely, with no government restrictions Many Party members criticised the corruption that was taking place within the Party, however most of them maintained that they were loyal to the Party

Student Demonstrations In 1986 there were demonstrations that encouraged students to get involved in local government The demonstrators were also looking for improved living conditions and more freedom The students demonstrations were not joined by workers Deng was starting to worry about another power struggle within the Party In 1986 there were demonstrations that encouraged students to get involved in local government These demonstrators were looking for improved living conditions and more freedom The government took a slightly more hospitable approach by attempting to disperse the demonstrations instead of arresting those involved Its worth noting that a year later, in 1987, Hu Yaobang who was the General secretary of the Party, as well as an advocate for political liberal-lisation, resigned from his post as he declared that he had made some uncorrectable mistakes So back to the students demonstrations, since the students were not joined by workers, once exams began, their protests slowly faded away At this point, Deng was starting to worry about another power struggle within the Party, although he was getting old, he had no intentions of handing over his leadership

Tiananmen Square 1989 Hu Yaobang died in April 1989 >> social change Deng had counseled restraint with Zhao Ziyang. Students intensified things. Deng Ordered the army to “Take All Necessary Measures” to seize the square.

Tiananmen Square 1989 (cont’d) The demonstrators were quickly suppressed. -no clear objective -lack of leadership Aftermath 800-1000 people were killed Mass arrests Many workers were executed. The students who were connected, received lighter sentences 1,602 individuals were imprisoned

Aftermath Zhao was removed and replace by Jiang Zemin, a loyal Deng supporter Deng resigned in 1989 - still remained the guiding figure till 1997. Today’s China -Economic liberalization -No Political liberalization

Student Protests: Tiananmen Square Video Student Protests: Tiananmen Square https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdGDoCAVSs4