CONTEMPORARY CHINA

Deng Xiaoping

 Born: 1904 Died: 1997 (93)

◦ Joined the Communist Revolution in
the 1920’s
◦ Became the Dominant Leader of the
Chinese Communist Party (CCP)
 He dismantled Maoism
1976 The Year of the Dragon
 April7th Politburo announces
two directives of Mao
◦ Removal of Deng from all
leadership (in and out of the
CCP)
◦ BUT: Deng lost his leadership,
not his party membership
◦ Appoints Hua Guofeng as
Premier.
 1976 The Year of the Dragon
 September 9th Mao Dies
 Hua Guofeng heads the Politburo (1976-1981)
 The Gang of Four Attempt to seize power
◦ Includes Mao’s Wife Jiang Qing (Madame Mao)
◦ Arrested Oct. 20th,
◦ Put on trial, guilty, jailed
 Gang of Four On Trial

 The most celebrated defendant is Jiang Qing,

67, the widow of Mao Tse-tung
 The Gang of Four, led Mao's reckless and
violent Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976
 They were arrested, shortly after Mao's death
in 1976
 Deng had been critical of the Cultural Rev. &
the Gang of Four
 Gang of Four Out of the Way

 They were sentenced to death.

 Later commuted to long-term imprisonment
 After a period of political indoctrination Jian
Qing was released in 1991 and died soon
after (May 14, 1991)
◦ some reports say she committed suicide
 Deng’s “Re-education(s)”
(Labeled a “Capitalist Roader”)
 First time: Oct.. 20, 1969 – Feb. 20,
1973
◦ Sent to Jiangxi Province, allowed to stay in
CCP
◦ Lived in a two story building
◦ Half an hour’s walk from the tractor-repair
facility
 Both he and his wife worked there
 Deng Wrote Mao Several Times for
Forgiveness
 Deng’s Second Banishment
April 1976 until July 1977
Allowed to stay in Beijing
Fully “REHABILITATED” by
the Party’s 11 Congress
th

(December 1978)
 Background to Deng Xiaoping
 Participated in the Long March with Mao
 Rose to power in the CCP as the general secretary
 Views on economics differed from Mao
◦ Mao = egalitarian, Deng = focused on economic
development
 During the failure of the Great Leap Forward, Deng
suggested allowing privatization of farms to increase food
production (Lenin’s NEP?)
 Survives all of Mao’s purges
◦ Deng utilized free market to revive the economy
from GLF
◦ Back to politics in 1973 with the help of Zhou Enlai
 1978: becomes the Chairman of the PLA (People’s
Liberation Army)
 “De-Maoization”
 Against the Cultural Revolution
 Four Modernizations :industry,
agriculture, science and technology,
national defence
 Deng’s policies more practical and
responsive to the economic times
 Willing to alter communist ideologies
for what’s best for the country
 Deng Xiao Ping’s Successes
Education:
 Tries to reverse the “un-education” of the Cultural
Revolution
◦ encourages studying abroad
◦ intellectuals sent to the farms during the Cultural
Revolution, Hundred Flowers and Great Leap Forward
were allowed to reunite with their families
 Promotes learning in universities and scientific
research
*He studied in his 20s in France where he was convinced in Marxism-
Leninism.
 Deng Xiao Ping’s Successes
Economics
 Farmers were allowed to produce more food on
their own initiative
 Private ownership is allowed
 Borrowed from foreign states to boost infrastructure
 1979: Special Economic Zones
◦ First four cities Shenzen, Zhuhai, Shantou, Xiamen
near Hong Kong and Taiwan were given
administrative independence and legal freedom to
conduct foreign trade (OPEN DOOR POLICY:
foreign investment and partnership - Markets rather
than central direction)
SEZs Locations
 Special Economic Zones

 Special tax incentive for foreign

investment
 Greater independence is provided for
International trade activities
 Products are primarily export oriented
 Market driven economic activity
 Attracts and utilizes foreign capital
DENG WAS THE FIRST
COMMUNIST LEADER TO
VISIT THE USA (1979)
 Deng Xiaoping’s Successes

 1984 successful negotiation to return Hong

Kong to China (1997)
 Agreed that HK would be returned to China
in assurance that it would keep its economic
and social systems
 HK acts like a SEZ
 Instead of China bringing down HK, it seems
that the success in HK has become a model
for China to follow.
 Deng Xiao Ping’s Successes

 Tenure was abolished and many made

way for more qualified people to take
government positions
 1984 revives China to a point that it is
self sufficient on food
 IN SUM: Mao re-unified China, Deng
pushed its economy forward
 Success or Failure?

One Child Policy (1979)

 1980 China has 1 billion people
 Began as a temporary measure but lasts to
today and will continue
 Has been limited to urban populations
 Fines, pressures to abort a pregnancy, and
forced sterilization accompanied second or
subsequent pregnancies
 Effects of One Child Policy
 Caused a disdain for female
babies
◦ abortion, child neglect,
abandonment, and even
infanticide
 114 males for every 100 females
 Estimated to have lowered the
population by 300 million
people
 It began on April 15, 1989. Hu Yaobing, a
Chinese leader who had been fairly
tolerant of student demonstrations in
1986, died.
 Students in Beijing mourned his passing
by meeting in Tiananmen Square and
voicing their grievances.
 On April 26, The Communist Party
newspaper People's Daily accused “an
extremely small number of people with
ulterior purposes” of inciting the
students to unrest in order to overthrow
the Communist government.
 There were warnings to students that
force might be used.
 The next day students from more than 40
universities demonstrated in Tiananmen Square to
protest the editorial.They were joined by thousands
of citizens.
 The square was occupied by pro-democracy
demonstrators until June 4.
 On May 13, 3,000 students began a hunger strike.
 On May 17 more than a million citizens and
students were demonstrating in Beijing.
 On May 20 martial law was declared.
 The army came to Beijing and was stopped by
citizens who blocked their path.
 Initial attempts of the People's Liberation Army to
remove the demonstrators failed.
 On May 30,
demonstrators erected
the Goddess of
Democracy in the
square, made in 4 days
out of plaster. It was
inspired in part by the
Statue of Liberty.
 On June 1 the
government cut off
access to foreign
journalists.
 On June 2, 6 convoys of
tanks and soldiers
moved toward central
Beijing.
 On June 3, soldiers were ordered to clear
Tiananmen Square at all costs.
 Tanks and armored personnel carriers moved
toward the square.
 Demonstrators were attacked with tear gas,
rubber bullets and electric truncheons.
 Soldiers opened fire on those attempting to
block their progress.
 By midnight the tanks had reached the square.
 On June 4, troops opened fire on the crowd.
2,600 were estimated dead and 10,000
injured.
 500 tanks and 300,000 soldiers occupied
Beijing. On June 11, there were massive
arrests.
 The near-revolution was over.
A NEW COUNTRY
AN OLD METHOD
“To Get Rich is Glorious”
—attributed to Deng
 Economic Reforms
◦ “Socialism and a market economy are not
incompatible”
◦ Opening to international trade and
investment
◦ Export-led growth
◦ Introduction of profit motive
◦ Special Economic Zones
 “Socialism with Chinese Characteristics”
or Capitalism in a Globalized Era?
An Economic Miracle – A Social disaster
 China’s economy has grown at about
8% yearly per person for the last 30
years.
 By some measures, China now has the
first-largest economy in the world.
 When Deng became leader, over half
China’s population was poor by global
standard. Now the figure stands at 10%
or less.
 At the same time, there are about 28
Chinese billionaires as of 2010
 CONTEMPORARY PROBLEMS
 A rapidly aging population
 Gender imbalance
 Income inequality
 Environmental degradation
 Dependence on fossil fuels
 An imbalanced economy
 Water shortages
 Ethnic tensions (Tibet, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia)
 Corruption and eroding trust in government
leadership
 Lack of participatory channels
 Repression of opponents and religious believers
 In 2008-2010 about 15.000 death sentences
 HONG KONG
 1898: Britain obtained a 99 year lease of H.K.
from imperial China.
 Early 1990s, Hong Kong has become a global
financial centre.
 1984: Sino-British Joint Declaration: U.K. agrees
to transfer H.K. in 1997 and China agrees to
guarantee H.K.’s political and economic system
for 50 years (‘one country, two systems).
 1987-1996: about half a million people leaves
H.K.
 2014: the Umbrella Revolution happened as a
consequence of the electoral reform imposed .
 March 2019: a mass protest in response to an
amendment bill allowing extradition of fugitives
to Taiwan, while protesters argued that criminals
might be extradited to China
 TAIWAN

 1949: The KMT retreated to Taiwan and declared Taipei the

temporary capital of the Republic Of China.
 1954: a mutual defense treaty with USA is established.
 1958, small-scale military campaigns between PRC and Taiwan
were carried out across the strait.
 1958 Taiwan Crisis for the control of Kinmen and Matsu Islands.
 2005: China passes the anti-secession law to perform military
actions in Taiwan.
 Taiwan often reports Chinese aircraft in its air defense zone.
 2013

 PRC became the world's largest trading

nation in 2013, overtaking the US in what
Beijing described as "a landmark milestone"
for the country.
 New Silk Road (Belt and Road Initiative)
 XI JINPING (1953)

 2013: GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE CCP,

CHAIRMAN OF THE CENTRAL MILITARY
COMMISSION, PRESIDENT OF PRC.
 HE IS ALLOWED TO REMAIN PRESIDENT FOR
LIFE AS TERM LIMITS (2 MANDATES) HAVE
BEEN REMOVED.
 POLITICAL STRUGGLE BETWEEN CCP AND
BILLIONAIRES (BIG COMPANIES).
MANY THANKS FOR YOUR
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