Great
Proletarian Cultural Revolution: a political movement launched in 1966 by Mao which became a violent
assault on those considered disloyal to Mao and the communist movement.
Although the most extreme phase ended in 1962 the aftermath continued to affect
the lives of millions until Mao's death
3 Bitter Years: 1959-61 prolonged famine and food
shortages throughout China, as a result of both man-made and natural disasters
(30 million died)
Peng Dehai: PLA member, whose reputation was
destroyed when he criticized Great Leap Forward and was dismissed in 1959
Socialist
Education Campaign:
political campaign to instill proper socialist values in the Chinese population
was ordered by chairman Mao in 1962, but the outcome fell short of his
expectations, leading to the Cultural Revolution in 1966
Little Red
Books: The Quotation of
Chairman Mao pocket-size
book
Lin Biao: general in the PLA and Minister of
Defense under Mao. A leader of the
Cultural Revolution, he prepared the ‘Little Red Book’ used by thousands of PLA
soldiers and Red Guards. Lin was accused of plotting against Mao and died in
1971 when his plane was shot down over Mangolia as her fled after a failed
coup
The ‘Four Olds’: old habits, customs, culture, and thought
denounced during the Cultural Revolution as part of an onslaught on the past,
young Red Guards destroyed temples, religious sites, books, and Western goods
such as pianos and clothing
Great Helmsman: Chairman Mao
Capitalist
Roader: epithet used
during the Cultural Revolution against those in positions of authority
deviating from the Maoist line.
Among those so accused in 1966 were Liu and Deng
‘571 Affair’: plot against Mao by his Minister of
Defense, Lin Biao, in September 1971
The Gang of
Four: consisting of
Chairman Mao’s wife, Jiang Qing, and her three key supporters in the Cultural
Revolution, this ‘gang’ was blamed for the excesses during the Cultural
Revolution
Central Comittee: the Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference, representing the will of the people of the
whole country, proclaims the establishment of the People's Republic of China
and is organizing the people's own central government. The Chinese People's
Political Consultative Conference unanimously agrees that New Democracy, or the
People's Democracy, shall be the political foundation for the national
construction of the People's Republic of China
Resist America: A "Resist America"
campaign stirs national pride and proves how effectively the new government can
mobilize the country. Chinese forces fight UN forces to a standstill and
greatly increase Mao's prestige.
Struggle Meetings: A struggle session was a form
of public humiliation used by the Communist Party of China in the Mao Zedong
era to shape public opinion and to humiliate, persecute, and/or execute
political rivals and so-called class enemies. In general, the victim of a
struggle session was forced to admit to various crimes before a crowd of people
who would verbally and physically abuse the victim until he or she confessed.
Anti-Rightist Movement: occurred in the 1950s
and early 1960s, consisted of a series of campaigns to purge alleged
"rightists" within the Communist Party of China (CPC) and abroad. The
definition of "rightists" was not always consistent, sometimes
including critics to the left of the government, but officially referred to
those intellectuals who appeared to favour capitalism and were against
collectivization. The campaigns were instigated by Chairman Mao Zedong and saw
the political persecution of an estimated 550,000
Zhou Enlai: first Premier of the People's
Republic of China, serving from October 1949 until his death in January 1976.
Zhou served under Mao Zedong and was instrumental in consolidating the control
of the Communist Party's rise to power, forming foreign policy, and developing
the Chinese economy.
The three obediences: of woman stated that
before marriage, the woman was to obey her father; after marriage, the woman
was to obey her husband; and lastly, after the death of her husband, the woman
was to obey her son. Thus, according to the ways of samjong, a woman was not
allowed to make her own decisions at any point in her life.
Liu Shaoqui: served the CCP mainly as a theoretician
and then after the Great Leap Forward he became the president of China
Cadre: supporter of communist cause engaged in
work on behalf of the movement.
Cadre may also be a member of the party if the CCP
Common Program: adopted in 1949, this was the basis for
China’s government until it was replaced with the first constitution in 1954
Politburo: Political Bureau, members of which are
chosen from the numerically larger Standing Committee if the Central Committee
of the Central Committee of the CCP
Agrarian Reform
Law of 1950: law
authorizing the redistribution of land in China; half the farm-land was
redistributed, mainly by confiscating the landholdings of wealthy families and
allotting it to poorer families
Marriage Law of
1950: one of the first
laws passed by the CCP making men and women legally equal, set minimum ages for
marriage, and outlawed concubine, among other practices. Its most controversial
clause granted women the right to sue for divorce
‘Old Feudal’: a term used to describe any-one still
adhering to old ideas after the Communist revolution of 1949
Four Pests
Campaign: a 1950s campaign
of the CCP to eliminate common pests throughout China, including rats,
mosquitoes, flies, and sparrows
Agricultural
Producers Cooperatives:
1955 organizations called upon the peasant-farmers of China to pool all their
resources and their land in order to increase production. These in turn led to the formation of
communes in 1958
100 Flowers
Campaign: 1957 campaign
called upon citizens to offer criticism of policies and cadre behavior;
programme ended abruptly in 1957
Great Leap
Forward: an economic
movement launched by Mao in 1958 to make China equal of Briton in 15
years. It led to widespread famine
and the deaths of millions
‘Speak
Bitterness’ Campaigns:
organized meetings of villagers to discuss the ‘bitterness’ of the past and
denounce the landlords as a symbol of the villagers’ past oppression
Regional
Autonomy System:
established to give minority groups a voice, ‘autonomous’ governments were
formed at the lower levels first, culminating in the formation of five autonomous
regions; each level included representatives of all nationalities living in the
area.
Communes: community of people living together
sharing common property, possessions, and resources, and income
First Five Year
Plan: (1953-57) goal was
to increase economic growth and emphasize development in heavy industry and
technology
Deng Xiaoping: reformist leader of CCP who led China
toward a market economy
Backyard Iron
and Steel plants: mass
campaign in 1958 to make iron and steel from melting peasant possessions, which
was a disaster
10 Wasted Years:
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