Thought Reform Movement

Thought Reform• Aim: to reform the thinking of Chinese people into

accepting Mao's thoughts and ideology• 1951-52- Zhou En Lai announces the Thought

Reform Movement • Done through a series of methods:

o Struggle sessionso Propagandao  self-criticism

Intellectuals who studied overseas were forced to admit that they were "implementers of the imperialist cultural invasion"

o  Revolutionary Colleges

Origins of the thought reform of the intellectuals

• Mao was suspicious of the "intellectuals" - those with higher education such as scientists, engineers, doctors, statisticians and geologists as they came from "bourgeois" families who could afford universities or foreign education.

• Their exposure to education gave Mao reason to fear the intellectuals as "implementers of the imperialistic cultural invasion"

• Mao also wanted to "throw away the vulgar perspectives of individualism and liberalism, and the cultural thought of European-American reactionary bourgeoisie"

• Mao also feared the intellectuals as they understood and valued freedom more than the proletariat.

• This can be evidenced by Hu Feng, a writer who criticised the lack of freedom in creativity and art.

Intellectuals• "Intellectuals are often ignorant and have little or

experience in practical matters"                                                -Mao• Mao was suspicious of intellectuals in China- often had

university degrees, came from bourgeoisie families• e.g. scientists, engineers, doctors, writers• These people were, however, indispensable to China's

growing economy- possessed necessary skills.• Nevertheless, they were seen as a threat to the Communist

regimeo educated in atmosphere of open debate and

academic freedomo more likely to speak out against Mao and the Party-

counter-revolutionary• Subjected to:

o courses in "revolutionary colleges"o self-criticism sessions

Course of the thought reform of the the intellectuals

• Tens of thousands of intellectuals forced to go to courses at revolutionary colleges where they learnt the teachings of Mao, Marx and Lenin

• Writers forced to study Mao's speech "Talk at Yanan Forum on Literature and Arts," a possible precursor to the Little Red Book

• Intellectuals were made to make self criticisms and confessions• Science and engineering was changed to the Soviet route• The thought reform process was highly efficient - "at about two

months from the date of the arrest...ready for a beginning to the recognition of his 'crimes'." - Robert Jay Lifton

How did the thought reform of the intellectuals contribute to Mao's

consolidation of power?• This contributed to Mao's consolidation of power as it

brainwashed the thoughts of "counter-revolutionaries" and reduced potential opposition from the intellectuals

• It minimised the influence of any remaining foreign influence in the form of the intellectual's ideas from foreign education

Pictures of Propaganda

The Course of the Campaign-The party was soon met with an unexpected torrent of

criticisms from from the press and intellectuals, many people criticized the frequent human rights abuses committed by the party, there were even reports of widespread strikes and attacks on party members.

-By June 1957 Mao's tone had changed and he was ready to abandon the campaign, in early July he ordered a full scale attack on the intellectual 'rightists', as many as 500,000 intellectuals were sent to labour camps or re-education as a result of this.

Pictures of Persecution

Anti-Rightist Campaign of Mao

Anti-Rightist Campaign (1957 & 59)

• This was initially tolerated and even encouraged. However, after a few months, Mao's government reversed its policy

• They persecuted those who criticized, and were alleged to have criticized, the Party

• This was called The Anti-Rightist Campaign

Raise revolutionary violence, oppose slackers, resolutely eliminate all revolutionary

Mao’s attacks on intellectuals broadened into a general campaign of repression, known as the ‘Anti-Rightist’ campaign. Anybody who expressed even the slightest opposition to Mao stood the risk of being reported, victimised and forced to take part in ‘Struggle Sessions’.

Jung Chang: ‘Mao – the unknown story’ 2005. P439

Deportees were just dumped in places like the far north of Manchuria, known as ‘the

Great Northern Wilderness’, and had to rig up a shelter ‘in a hurry, using wheat stems to make a roof’ in a temperature of -38C.

Even with a fire, ‘it was still a dozen or so degrees below zero . . .’

‘The grass and beaten earth huts we lived in had wind coming in on all sides . . . There

were hardly any vegetables or meat . . . We got up . . . Just after 4 at dawn, and did not stop until 7 or 8 in the evening . . . In these 15-16 hours . . . We basically worked non-

stop . . . In summer . . . We had to get up at 2.00 am . We had at most three hours’ sleep.

" Tie you a rope, " is a Chinese expression commonly used when someone is arrested by the government.

A view of Laiyang Heavy Machinery Plant

Camp life was harsh, spartan and brutal.

Artists, who had been sent to a forced labour camp, having to work on propaganda paintings on the side of a building wall.

A botany student from the city is sent to a distant arid farming region to work the land, as punishment for criticising Mao. She was instructed to ‘learn from the peasant’.

‘You’re here to redeem your crime! Don’t dare to make trouble, or look for ways to be lazy!’ Deportees had to work on less than subsistence-level rations. Many died from malnutrition, illness, cold, overwork and in accidents doing unfamiliar jobs like felling trees.

Mao talking to colleagues, revealed that one province, Hunan, had ‘denounced 100,000, arrested 10,000, and killed 1000. The other provinces did the same. So our problems were solved.’ [There are 23 provinces in China].

“Emperor Qin buried alive only 460

scholars; we have buried 46,000 scholars.

But haven’t we killed counter-revolutionary

intellectuals?”

“Emperor Qin buried alive only 460

scholars; we have buried 46,000 scholars.

But haven’t we killed counter-revolutionary

intellectuals?”

Results and Effects of Thought Reform, Hundred

Flowers Campaign, and Anti-Rightest Campaign

Results of the Anti-Rightist Campaign

• 700,000 intellectuals were thrown out of their positions and professions

• In every factory, 5% of the workers had to be denounced as “rightists”

• All were sent to the countryside for reform – many died of malnutrition, illness, cold, overwork, and accidents doing unfamiliar jobs

• Some were executed or committed suicide

1. Mao silenced potential opponents.

2. He instilled fear amongst the educated classes who were now less willing to stand against Mao.

3. Mao prepared the ground for introducing the Great Leap reforms – communes, ‘backyard furnaces’ and an extreme form of communist society

4. China’s intelligentsia [brightest minds – artists, writers, journalists, etc] were decimated which set back China’s cultural development.

5. Many students had their education interrupted due to the death of so many teachers - some 5 million children had their schooling terminated

6. Some 4 million people may have lost their lives in the ‘Anti-Rightist campaigns which started after the Hundred Flowers.

Stalin, the hardline leader of Russia and the Communist world, died in 1953.

He was followed by the more moderate Khruschev.

Khruschev eased the repression but this led to demands for more freedom and in Hungary led to revolts.

Russia sent in tanks to crush the rebellions

If Mao introduced similar moderate reforms what would happen in China?

What would happen to Mao?

‘The basic problem with some Eastern European countries is that they did not eliminate all those counter-revolutionaries . . . Now they are eating their own bitter fruit . . . Eastern Europe just did not kill on a grand scale. We must kill. And we say it’s good to kill.’

Looking Back on the Hundred Flowers & Anti-Rightist Campaigns

• Two Opinions on the Hundred Flowers Campaign:– From the start, it was a sneaky way to discover who truly

opposed Mao– Mao intended to weaken those within his party who

opposed him by having them bicker between themselves, but it backfired when people criticized him more than he intended

Consequences• Party unity was strengthened

• Mao's position as leader of the CCP was at its peak

• Atmosphere of fear was created

• Intellectuals were silenced o 500,000 intellectuals were killed with another

100,000 put into re education camps/ lao gai's o Stasis on China's cultural development

• Used it as a foreground for the 'Great Leap Foward'

How it strengthened Mao's hold on power

- The Hundred Flowers Campaign and the anti-rightist campaign into which it evolved served to silence the criticisms of the Communist regime by creating fear within the Chinese public and the intellectual community.

-It also served to strengthen party unity under Mao against outside influence, in effect Mao was unchallengeable.

-A popular saying of the time was 'after the anti-rightist campaign no one opens their mouth.'

The End