The People’s Republic of China Economic Development 16:2 February 9, 2006

Fill out accompanying worksheet throughout presentation.

Essential Questions What obstacles stood in the way of the modernization of China? What were the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution? How did economic policies change after Mao’s leadership?

Activating Questions (These should be answered by the end of the Presentation!) *Write them in your notebook and answer throughout Presentation* What is a “commune”? What is a “collective farm”? What is “Capitalism”? Why did Mao launch the Cultural Revolution? Who do you associate with the “Long March”, “Little Red Book”, and “Great Leap Forward”? What was a major goal of the Cultural Revolution during the 1960s?

Mao proclaimed three main goals for China’s Communist revolution…. He promised a better life for the poor. He called for a development of a modern economy. He pledged to restore China’s position as a major world power.

OBSTACLES … When the Communists took over in 1949 many obstacles prevented them from achieving these goals.

‘Uh-Oh’ Problems Faced by Mao China’s Huge Population Needed Fed Clothed Housed Educated Farming and Manufacturing Years of war destroyed them Floods, earthquakes, and droughts Lacked capital and technology to industrialize quickly

REORGANIZING AGRICULTURE Quickly introduced land reform Took land from large landowners and divided it among landless farm families During the early 1950s, the government set up new programs, ending private ownership of land altogether. Formed COLLECTIVE FARMS The government forced peasants to pool their land, tools, and labor Members of collective farms worked for the state and received a share of the harvest (the rest went to the gov’t) Believed that collective farms would be more efficient and result in greater food production

Mao Developed Programs to reform land practices …

Mao called on the Chinese to make a superhuman effort to achieve modernization through one … Great Leap Forward

Great Leap Forward Introduced in 1958. Divided China into Communes Communes included several villages, thousands of acres of land, and as many as 20,000 people Commune controlled the land and the peasants’ lives Families were split up Men, Women, and Children slept in separate dormitories and ate in large dining halls Commune assigned jobs to each workers. In turn, it provided all workers with food, clothing, housing, medical care, etc.

Would you like to live in a commune system? Think About it! Would you like to live in a commune system?

Big Surprise: The Commune System FAILED! Peasants resisted the commune system Sometimes even destroyed crops Since everyone was guaranteed a living, many workers did not work very hard Finally, during the early 1960s, Mao had to abandon the Great Leap Forward in favor of less ambitious plans

In 1966, to renew the revolutionary spirit, Mao launched the GREAT PROLETARIAN CULTURAL REVOLUTION Methods: Stressed class struggle Urged young people to seek out followers of Capitalism Another term for free market economy. Young people followed the “Little Red Book Organized the Red Guards Red Guards held mass rallies to support Mao Red Guards abused people with bad class backgrounds Victims of the abuse were then sent to distant rural areas to do manual labor

Yikes! The Cultural Revolution Did Not Work Either! Created chaos in China Schools Closed Slowed production in factories Emphasis on political struggle continued until Mao’s death Cultural Revolution left deep wounds Many people had been tortured, imprisoned, or killed Millions of young people never completed school Many lost faith in Mao and in the Communist party

Life after Mao … After Mao’s death in 1976, a power struggle took place On one side was the “Gang of Four” Mao’s top supporters and his widow Favored radical policies of the Cultural Revolution On the other side were moderate leaders Won! Made up vast majority

Deng Steps Up! By 1978, Deng Xiaoping had emerged as China’s leader. Deng’s goal was to help China achieve wealth and power. He stressed economic reform, instead of class struggle, as the way to achieve his goals. Named his program the Four Modernizations

Four Modernizations It called for … Modernizing Agriculture Expanding industry Developing science and technology Upgrading China’s defense forces

Farming Deng wanted to … Increase the mechanization of farming Make China self-sufficient in food production Introduced the Responsibility System Think about it! Would you prefer to farm in a Commune System or the Responsibility System? Responsibility System: Each farm family was responsibly for making their own living Each family raised crops and had to sell a portion of the harvest to the government The rest could be sold for a profit

The Responsibility System Worked Encouraged by the chance at profits, farmers produced larger crops. Farm output grew rapidly and raised the standard of living in many areas Why do you think this system worked?

The government was still controlling. China did not adapt capitalism The government still controlled much of the economy There were still some collective farms, because the government feared that small farms cold not produce enough food for all of China’s people Even as the government made economic reforms, it kept political control. Supporters of democracy were often harassed and jailed.

Industry! Unlike Mao, who emphasized heavy industry (mining and military weapons), Deng shifted emphasis to light industry. Emphasis on Consumer Goods To make factories more efficient, Deng extended the responsibility system to industry Managers were allowed to make decisions about what to produce, but they were also held responsible for making a profit. Allowed private entrepreneurs to operate their own businesses

‘Uh-Oh’ New problems in China: Under the reforms, China’s economy boomed and industrial output rose. Rapid economic growth brings new problems: Millions of rural people have crowed into towns and cities Air and water pollution have increased China’s crime rate has rise, and corruption has grown Although the standard of living has risen for many people, large differences between rich and poor have also reappeared. Brainstorm. What problems do you think China faces because of rapid economic growth?

Expanding Trade Deng, and his successor, Jiang Zemin, ended Mao’s policy of isolating China from the rest of the world. Opened the door to foreign trade and investment They realized that China needed foreign technology and capital in order to modernize To attract foreign capital, Deng set up Special Economic Zones in southeastern China. Today, free enterprise thrives there.