Consolidation of Communist Power

*The People's Republic of China (PRC)

Wild Swans, Chaps. 7-8

Based on the travels of the author’s parents from Manchuria to Sichuan, how much control did the CCP have over China in late 1949?

*Land Reform, 1950-5s2

Goals

Reward poor peasants

70% of population

Destroy landlord class

Increase production

Procedures

Mass campaigns

Wild Swans, ch. 8

Class status determined

Class enemies

Social humiliation

Results

Popular among poor majority

Raised standard of living

Enhanced agricultural productivity

15% annual growth, 1950-1952

Consolidation of cities

Public apprehension of CCP vs. Disdain for GMD

Exercise of Control

GMD bureaucracy

CCP appointees for oversight

*Urban resident committees, 1952

100-500 families

*Work units

“Mass campaigns” carried out by “work teams” (Spence, 478-483; Wild Swans, 1st ed., pp. 183-4, 2nd ed., pp. 175-79)

Three and Five Antis campaigns

Popular programs

Social order restored

Inflation controlled

Opium addiction and prostitution eliminated

Expulsion of foreigners

Private businesses allowed initially

Restored industrial production

Soviet model of economic planning

Soviets aid and technical advisers

Emphasis on heavy industry

Nationalization of private businesses, 1950-55

*5-year plans

1st 5-year plan (1953-1957)

Production quotas (Spence, p. 486)

Source of economic investment

Soviet Union, 3%

China's peasants, 97%

Quota of 1/4 of harvest

Shanghai per capita annual consumption (based on Spence p. 490)

Based on the the table in Spence and chart below, can early CCP economic policy be judged a success?

Formal Social Structure

“Democratic Dictatorship”

CCP leadership (big star on flag)

Good classes (small stars on flag)

Workers
Peasants
Petty bourgeoisie
National bourgeois

Bad classes

Landlords
Bureaucratic bourgeoisie

Formal Political system

“Democratic Dictatorship”

Parliamentary system

National People’s Congress

Premier heads Cabinet

Cabinet members head ministries and commissions

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade, State Economic Commission, State Planning Commission, State Commission for Restructuring the Economy, etc., etc.

Informal Power structure

CCP Central committee

Politburo (14 members)
Politburo standing committee

*Mao Zedong
*Liu Shaoqi
*Zhou Enlai
*Zhu De
Chen Yun

Zig-zag policy making

Chairman Mao Zedong vs. Liu Shaoqi

Supreme Leader w/o formal title-Mao Zedong

Ceremonial Head of State (until 1959)
*Chairman of CCP
*Chairman of Central Military Commission
Personal Popularity

Exercise of central control

Communist Party Branches throughout bureaucracy of central ministries, provincial governments, army units, residential committees, work units, etc.

Party Secretary

Party members

Wild Swans, Chaps. 9-10

Chapter 9

1. How did “mass campaigns” carried out by “work teams” serve to control CCP party members and the society at large? (1st ed., pp. 183-4; 2nd ed., pp. 175-79)

• The author says, “everyone in the category which has been designated as the target by Peking came under some degree of scrutiny, mostly from their workmates and neighbors rather than the police” (p. 184). Since the work teams were outside of the formal police and judicial system, what problems did this raise in determining guilt or innocence of individuals?
• How would this serve to control society?
• These control mechanism were developed during a period of war.  Were they needed in China during peacetime?

2. Chapter 9 provides valuable insights about the sources of corruption in traditional societies, like China, and others, like Afghanistan, that are still transitioning to modernity. I think as Americans living in an advanced economy, it seems natural to blame corruption on the greed of individuals, but this can lead us to misunderstanding of societies like China.

• The first hint come from the title of Chapter 9 “When a Man Gets Power, Even His Chickens and Dogs Rise to Heaven.” What does this traditional saying imply?
• The subtitle is “Living with an Incorruptible Man.” Why is the father considered incorruptible?
• What sorts of pressures does he face from his wife and family members to do favors for them?
• Why do they become angry with him? Are they being greedy? Or is he being unfair to them?

Chapter 10

1. Why does the mother fall under suspicion during the campaign against hidden counterrevolutionaries in 1955?

• How does the CCP team investigate her past during her 6 months of detention?
• What is the outcome?

2. What is life like for the children with two busy and detained communist cadres for parents?