Mao: Collectivisation and agricultural policies Elissa Khawli

Historical Background of the agriculture in China  Private land ownerships and one-family farms.  Early 1950’s, the CCP was planning to improve then eliminate this system.  Marxist goals of eliminating this system following Stalin’s model of collectivization.

What is collectivization? Collectivism= A political or economical theory advocating collective control especially over production and distribution. Collectivism= A political or economical theory advocating collective control especially over production and distribution. "collectivism." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Merriam-Webster Online. 13 March 2010 Collectivization= To organize by collectivism. Collectivization= To organize by collectivism. "collectivization." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary Merriam-Webster Online. 13 March 2010

Ressemblances withStalin’s model Mao followed Stalin’s model in collectivization. – Heavy industry – Role of women changes Liberation of women – Collectivization, land reforms and sharing houses – Abolishment of rich class

Agrarian Reform Law (1950) The reform’s basic key points consisted of: – Abolishment of feudal services and forced labors – Training and dispersion of cadres in the countryside – Supervision of local peasant associations and militias – Landlords to refund rent deposits for peasants

Agrarian Reform Law (continued) – Identification of villagers’ class status – Meetings taking place for oppressed people to denounce their oppressors – Properties of rich landlords shared by the poor and middle classes and landlords given share of lands. – By the end of 1952: agricultural productivity increasing and peasants gaining self confidence

Problems with the Reform law Some plots were too small Appearance of social divisions Poor harvests in Peasants were migrating to the cities

Society’s change in terms of women Pre-Communist China: – Inferior to men – Excluded from political life – No property/inheritance rights – Have to obey their father or their husband – No education or social activities – Arranged marriages, don’t have the right to remarry – Polygamy and prostitution – Foot-binding

Society’s change (continued) Communist China: – 1949: The Common Program Ended women’s oppression : men and women share equal rights politically, economically, socially, culturally and educationally – Abolishment of prostitution: close brothels + educate and reform former prostitutes

Society’s change (continued) – 1950: Marriage law: Abolition of forced marriages, equality between husband and wife  Reduction in domestic maltreatance and abuse  Increase in love marriages

Transition Chaos Major social change from feudalism to socialism – Former rich class feels oppressed – Loss of worker’s incentive – Destruction of privileged class – Change in social structure due to enhancement of role of women

Stage number one: Mutual Aid Teams (MATs) 5 or 6 households would join each other to work cooperatively on activities such as sowing or harvesting. Each household still owned its own land and the crops harvested on that land would belong to that family. By 1952, 40% of China’s rural households were in MATs.

Stage number two: “Lower”Agricultural Producers’ Cooperatives (APCs) Includes more households than MATs (around 20 households) Merge tools and lands and work all together A management committee would give daily work points to each family

“Lower” APCs (continued) At the end of the year, crop and income would be divided to each family according to how much points they have earned and how much tools and land they have contributed to the APC 15 thousand APCs were established at the end of 1953

Stage number three: Full Collectivization (higher APCs) 150 to 200 households No more nominal ownership like in the semi-socialist APC Lands were legal property of the APC Crop distribution to each household was only made according to the amount of labor of each household. By 1956, 88% of the APCs were higher APCs

People’s Communes Communes were a dozen of higher APCs grouped together. 25 thousand people average 26 thousand communes by the end of 1958 One organization combining political, administrative and military functions

Positive Results of Collectivization (for CPP) CCP became more powerful over Chinese peasants A large amount of the income gained from the countryside was invested for industrialization

Negative Results of Collectivization After 1955: Inefficiencies in agricultural productivity Peasants were dissatisfied because they didn’t own any land anymore and lost motivation for work Mismanagement in rural areas

Equality versus economic growth While Mao achieved economic growth in China and the Chinese economy improved, was equality in the society achieved? – Terrible conditions in the people’s communes – Rich class society deprived from their lands, poor had right to denounce them.  Inequality

Bibliography le%20of%20mao_textbook%20notes_tomkinson le%20of%20mao_textbook%20notes_tomkinson Chinese propaganda posters, osterdec&code=50&displistindex=3 osterdec&code=50&displistindex=3 Book Rags, Agricultural Collectivization – China collectivization-china-ema-01/ collectivization-china-ema-01/ Mao’s domestic policy-part 2 org/Mao's%2520Domestic%2520Policies%2520- %2520Part%25202.ppt+mao+agricultural+policies+filetype:ppt&cd= 3&hl=en&ct=clnk org/Mao's%2520Domestic%2520Policies%2520- %2520Part%25202.ppt+mao+agricultural+policies+filetype:ppt&cd= 3&hl=en&ct=clnk