Lesson 1-What was the nature of the power struggle within China, 1962-6? Flashcards
Define collectivist principle.
The Marxist notion that social advance can be achieved only by the proletarian class acting together as a body and not allowing individuals to follow their own interests.
Define ideologues
CCP hardliners who believe in pushing Mao’s revolutionary politics to the extreme and suppressing all opposition.
Define pragmatists
CCP members who believed that policies should be adjusted according to circumstances rather than being slavishly followed for ideological reasons
Who were the Group of Five?
A set of moderate party officials led by Peng Zhen 1902-97, the mayor of Beijjing.
Who were the Shanghai Forum?
A group of hard line leftist radicals who believed in the hardest measures being taken against those who opposed Mao
Who were the Gang of Four?
Made up of Jiang Qing and her 2 males associates:
Zhang Chunquiao
Yao Wenyuan
Wang Honwen
Define counter-revolutionaries
Term used by hard line Maoists to describe those in the party who favoured more moderate policies
Define packing.
Controlling the membership of committees in such a way that they always contained a majority of Maoists
CCRG
Central Cultural Revolution Group
Who were the CCRG?
Subcommittee of the Politburo.
Established in May 1965.
Its 17 members included the Gang of Four
With his temporary withdrawal from government, what tasks did Mao charge Liu and Deng with?
Bringing an end to the rural crisis.
Restoring adequate food supplies
When tackling the problems caused by the GLF, whose help did Liu and Deng enlist?
Chen Yun
What did Chen Yun, Liu and Deng conclude was the only workable solution to fix the food crisis resulting from the GLF?
Allow private farming and markets to operate again
Why would allowing private farming and markets to operate again help fix the food crisis after the GLF?
Would provide peasant farmers with an incentive to produce surplus stocks
What did Chen Yun, Liu and Deng admit was a failure from the GLF?
Communes
Why did Mao become uneasy with the methods of Chen Yun, Liu and Deng?
It undermined the collective principle which he has set such score as a Communist revolutionary
In the early 1960s, in which provinces did supporters of Liu and Deng begin to take over the local government and reverse the collectivisation programme?
Gansu
Qinghai
After his temporary withdrawal from government, what did Mao never lose his fear of?
That plot were being made to overthrow him
Who were the main divisions of the party who were involved in the power struggle that followed Mao’s withdrawal from the political centre ground?
Left
Right
Centre
What did the left want after Mao’s temporary withdrawal from government?
Maintenance of stringent controls and enforcement
What did the right want after Mao’s temporary withdrawal from government?
Relaxation of controls and encouragement rather than coercion
What did the centre want after Mao’s temporary withdrawal from government?
Coercion intermixed with a lighter touch depending on particular circumstances
Even though the left division of the party knew the GLF was a failure, what did they believe must not be abandoned from it?
The harsh methods it used
Why did the left divisions of the party believe the harsh methods of the GLF should not be abandoned?
Many would argue that the control of peasants and workers in accordance with Maoist principles had to be maintained even if that meant slower economic growth
What year was the SEM?
1963
What was the SEM?
Socialist Education Movement
What did the SEM reveal?
The nature of the divide within the CCP
Despite being called the Socialist Education Movement, what was the movement more concerned with?
Politics
Goal of SEM.
To cleanse politics, economy, organization, and ideology (the four cleanups).
It was to last until 1966.
What this movement entailed was that intellectuals were sent to the countryside to be re-educated by peasants.
How did the SEM begin?
With Mao’s backing as another anti-campaign.
Presented as the 4 clean ups
How would education be passed on in the SEM?
Peasants, government officials and party cadres were despatched to the countryside tasked with exposing the reactionary elements who had prevented the GLF from being successful
What was the result of education being passed on in the SEM?
Exposing reactionary elements revealed the opposite
It was not the reactionary elements coming from lack of effort by ordinary peasants which prevented the GLF from being successful but what?
Corruption and collusion between local party bosses and the officials sent to implement the reforms of the GLF
How did Liu figure out the it was corruption and collusion between local party bosses and officials which prevented the success of the GLF?
Aided by his wife, he went to live amongst peasant to gain first-hand knowledge
Liu Shaoqi’s wife?
Wang Guangmei