Economic developments 1962-66 Flashcards
Why did the 3rd Five Year Plan not go ahead in the years 1963 - 1968?
It was evident that the Chinese economy needed to undergo a period of restructuring, following the
catastrophic failure of the Second Five Year Plan (GLF).
Who favoured the ‘pragmatic’ approach to economic planning (3)?
Chen Yun, Liu Shaoqi, Deng Xiaoping.
How did the ‘pragmatists’ ideas of economic planning differ to Mao’s (4)?
1) While Mao believed in mass mobilisation to overcome technical backwardness, the pragmatists valued
technical experts, advocating for the rehabilitation of intellectuals purged in the anti-Rightist campaign of
1958.
2) Mao favoured the decentralisation of planning to communes, whilst the pragmatists restored centralised,
bureaucratic control to the planning process.
3) Mao wanted the economy to grow on a broad front, but the pragmatists refocused industrial production on
fewer, more specific projects.
4) Mao’s economic strategy prioritised industrialisation, while the pragmatists temporarily changed this to
one of ‘agriculture first’, as industrial development was held back by agriculture, as seen in the GLF.
How was agriculture restructured 1962-66 (8)?
1) Large communes were broken down into smaller ‘production brigades’, and given more autonomy in
decisions regarding work.
2) Lysenko’s flawed farming methods were abandoned.
3) Communal canteens were abandoned, with peasants allowed to feed themselves at home.
4) Peasants were allowed to cultivate their own private plots, with 5% of land belonging to a commune set
aside for private plots.
5) Communes introduced financial incentives to encourage hard work.
6) Rural fairs and markets were permitted, and peasants encouraged to grow food for private sale.
7) Non-agricultural activities, taking men away from the fields during the GLF, were restricted.
8) Around 20 million peasants, who had drifted to towns in search of food and work, were returned to their
home villages.
How was industry restructured 1962-66 (6)?
1) Around 25,000 inefficient enterprises set up under the GLF were closed down.
2) Coal and steel targets were reduced to more realistic levels, and targets were reviewed annually.
3) Industrial workers were offered financial incentives to increase production.
4) To relieve urban youth unemployment, a scheme was introduced, encouraging young people to live in the
countryside for a period of time to ‘learn from the peasants.
5) Scientific research was prioritised to compensate for the loss of Soviet advisors and to create greater
national self reliance.
6) Priority was given to the improvement of transport infrastructure, especially railways and roads.
What were the 2 key results of the restructuring of the Chinese economy 1962-66?
1) By 1964, the output of the manufacturing industry had recovered to the levels reached in 1957.
2) Agricultural production grew 1962-66, although food production was still 14% below the levels reached in
1958, and large quantities of grain were still being imported.
How did Mao and the ‘pragmatists’ clash over oil production in Daqing (4 stages)?
1) In the late 1950s, a new oilfield was discovered in Daqing (northeast China), and production of oil began
in 1960.
2) A large oil refinery and a new city at Daqing were built, with production of refined oil products increasing
rapidly during the 1960s.
3) The pragmatists believed that this was due to their focus on specific projects to advance China’s
development.
4) Most of the equipment at Daqing was primitive, and workers compensated by improvising and with hard
work. Mao labelled this the ‘Daqing spirit’, encouraging others to learn from the example.
What was the myth of the Dazhai commune (4)?
1) Led by Chen Yonggui, an illiterate peasant, the peasants of Dazhai began in the 1950s to bring poor quality
land into cultivation.
2) Reportedly, grain production tripled 1952-62, but in 1963, a series of natural disasters destroyed much of
the commune’s farmland.
3) Refusing the offer of state help, Dazhai reportedly repaired the damage within a year, again achieving
impressive grain production results.
4) Mao praised this, and after meeting Yonggui in 1964, instructed others to ‘learn from Dazhai’. For Mao,
this was proof of mass mobilisation and self-reliance.
How did Mao and the ‘pragmatists’ clash over the Dazhai commune (3 stages)?
1) The pragmatists were suspicious of Dazhai’s grain production figures, and believed local CCP cadres were
colluding in fraud.
2) During the Socialist Education campaign, a work team investigated Dazhai, suspending their leadership
and rectifying local cadres. Dazhai was downgraded from an ‘advanced brigade’ to one with ‘serious
problems’.
3) Mao intervened, and the work team was withdrawn and replaced by one more in tune with Mao’s thinking.
This concluded that Dazhai was a model commune.
How did Mao utilise Dazhai as propaganda?
Dazhai was used as a Maoist showpiece, used as concrete evidence to all of the correctness of MZT.
What was the truth about Dazhai (3), and when was it revealed?
In 1980, after Mao’s death, it was revealed:
1) Dazhai had received massive amounts of state aid.
2) PLA soldiers had helped in the rebuilding in 1963.
3) Grain production figures actually declined year by year.
What were the First, Second, and Third Line?
For defensive planning, Mao split China into 3 lines/fronts:
1) The First Line was China’s coastal regions, on the assumption any attack on China would involve a
seaborne invasion.
2) The Second Line was in central China.
3) The Third Line was in the far southwest, in Guizhou, Sichuan, and Yunnan provinces.
Why did Mao want to strengthen national defences in the early 1960s, and how did he aim to do so?
In the early 1960s, Mao was becoming increasingly concerned with the possibility of war, with increasingly
hostile relations with the USSR, and the escalation in Vietnam. Mao believed it essential to strengthen
national defences, with his priority the Third Line. He aimed to do so with he building of factories, research
institutes, roads and railways.
How did Mao strengthen the Third Line in the 1960s (5)?
1) At least 483 factories and 92 research stations were built in the Third Line provinces.
2) Most of Chinese nuclear research was undertaken in Sichuan province.
3) Many companies from coastal regions were relocated to western China.
4) After 1965, around 1.6 million workers were assigned to Third Line projects.
5) Under the Third Five Year Plan (launched 1966), the Third Line provinces were allocated the largest share
of state investment (approx. 70% 1966-70).
How effective was the development of the Third Line (4)?
1) Offered little in terms of security when nuclear war was the main threat to China.
2) The need to disperse factories and research institutes increased costs, and led to a lack of coordination.
3) Many factories were not completed.
4) High levels of wasted materials and labour.
