Communism in ChinaThe Years After Mao
Death of Mao Zedong Mao Zedong’s dies in 1979 China is far behind other industrialized
nation
Power Struggle There was a power
struggle behind those who wished to follow Mao’s beliefs and a group who just wished to make China better (no matter what the philosophy)
Deng Xiaoping He was the 2nd leader of Communist
China
Deng Xiaoping’s Leadership He had a much more practical view of
government than Mao He was willingly to use parts of other
economic systems His goal was to bring China into the
modern age through improvements
4 Modernizations
New government program instituted by Deng
Goal was to improve agriculture, industry, science & technology, & defense as quickly as possible.
Agriculture Modernizations Repair damage done to farms during the
Great Leap Forward Established a contract responsibility
system› families rented land from the government› the families decided what they wanted to sell
Government bought an amount of the produce at a set price
All the rest of the produce could be sold for whatever price they could get
Agriculture Modernizations The chance to make more money by
growing more crops led farmers to increase their production be 8% each year
Industrial Modernizations Changed the focus of industry from
heavy industry (iron, steel, big machines) to light industry (small consumer goods, clothing, appliances, etc)
Industrial Modernizations Gave more decision-making power to
factory managers Reward program developed for factory
managers and workers who found ways to make factories produce more
Economic Modernization Created 4 special
economic zones › Owners and
producers were able to control market without much government interference
› brought in foreign investors
› now there are hundreds of these special zones
General Results from the 4 Modernizations program
Economy is now stronger than ever› if it keeps growing at the rate it is now- by
2025 it could be the largest economy in the world
General Results from the 4 Modernizations program
Improvements in the daily life of Chinese people› for example in the
1980’s few households had any modern appliances- by early 1990’s 80% of households owned washing machines
Unexpected Results from the 4 Modernizations program
Economic growth has taken place unevenly› coastal zones have grown richer› the interior regions are poorer and lag far
behind in the economy
Unexpected Results from the 4 Modernizations program
Farmers realized they could make more money from cash crops (quick growing, high resell value)
China suddenly had a shortage of staple foods, like grain
Unexpected Results from the 4 Modernizations program
Population shifted dramatically› 120 million people
left towns to move to the big cities
› rapid increase in urban growth has resulted in an increase in crime and management problems
Demand of a 5th Modernization The 5th Modernization
› As the Chinese people became accustomed to economic reform, they begin to demand a 5th reform
Chinese wanted democratic rights› they wanted to express political beliefs and
ideas openly without fear › they wanted to have a voice in the
government› they wanted freedom of speech, religion,
privacy, etc
Demonstrations for reform In 1989, thousands of
Chinese, mostly college students, had a series of peaceful demonstrations in Beijing and other major cities to demand democratic reforms
They would hold hunger strikes and sit-in
The world media began to focus on the demonstrations
Tiananmen Square In May and June of 1989,
there were about 100,000 Chinese demonstrating in Tiananmen Square in Beijing
The government decided to end the protests
first they meet with the student leaders and tried to make them stop and disband
when that failed they went to their second solution
Video Clip- 1:23 to about 1:38
Tiananmen Square On June 3rd, 1989 the government ordered
all the protestors to go home That night troops surrounded the protesters
and opened fire without any warning. It is believed as many as 1,000 people were killed and hundreds more wounded.
Within days China gathered any suspected leaders. they were killed by troops without a trial
The world was outraged! China basically said – it is none of your business.
Tiananmen Square China’s leaders believe that economic
growth can succeed only if the people are kept “in line” politically.
China today Chinese people have more freedoms
than earlier, but the communists still control much of their people’s life
Government Oversight Internet usage, cell phone conversation, i-
pods, facebook, twitter, regular mail, and even regular conversations are all filtered and monitored by the government. There are security officers (soldiers) with guns all over, Communist spies in neighborhoods, “suspected” people under surveillance.
Even Google had to agree to some type of government oversight in order to operated in China