A Cat of a Different Color: China After Mao

This timeline presents an alternate path for China after the death of Mao Zedong on September 9, 1976. It’s the first timeline I’ve done, so if you’ve got any feedback or criticism, let me know!

On a brief note, I’ve rendered all Chinese names in Pinyin, for the sake of clarity, but in order to retain somewhat of an authentic feel, I have retained a few easily recognizable place names such as “Peking” and “Canton” in entries written from a Western point of view. Again, let me know if you’d prefer a different strategy for Romanization.


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Oh, in those days we had no idea what was going on. All the power struggles, the intrigue, the backstabbing – that was happening right under our noses, but we were completely in the dark. Now, there were hints, sure – clues dropped along the way – but more often than not you just didn’t recognize them for what they were. Looking back on it a couple years later, after the dust had settled a bit, you’d take a look at what you had seen and heard, and you’d slap yourself on the forehead and think to yourself “It was so obvious!” But really, we never did see it coming.

- Richard Asper, former correspondent, Globe and Mail, Mar. 7, 2010


With no word on the fate of the body of Mao Zedong, almost a month after his death, rumors are beginning to percolate much as they did following the death of Prime Minister Zhou Enlai last winter. Much of the rumors that reach Hong Kong are probably nothing more than gossip, but the stories reflect a widespread uncertainty after a year of unsettling events – the passing of Mao and Zhou, a divisive anti-rightist campaign, and a series of earthquakes.

One rumor, brought from Canton, even speaks of the possible rehabilitation of Deng Xiaoping, the Deputy Prime Minister who was ousted last spring. Another, from Shanghai, is that a glass factory is making a crystal coffin in which Mao’s body is to be preserved.

Judging by the Chinese press, the authorities themselves are concerned about the prevalence of such stories and by signs of a breakdown in public discipline in everything from petty crime to worker absenteeism.

According to a broadcast from Jiangsu Province, the worker militia of a cotton textile mill has “persistently carried out patrol and sentry duties day and night in the neighborhoods and residential areas to which they are assigned, keeping guard against sabotage by class enemies.”

“They have dealt a powerful rebuff at rumors and the current undermining activities carried out by class enemies,” according to this report.

Who the class enemies are, or what the rumors they were spreading are, was not stated.

-- New York Times article, Oct. 5, 1976


Soldiers in the streets. Not militia, but PLA – the real deal. I was having dinner at the International Club, and then all of a sudden there was this low rumbling noise. Looked out the window to see a convoy of army trucks speeding down Chang’an Avenue – really speeding, like they had somewhere they needed to be in a hurry. And then on the way back to the hotel I see these guys in their green fatigues on all the street corners holding AK-47’s … or, you know, whatever guns they’ve got here. Heavy duty stuff. Something’s definitely going on.

-- diary of Richard Asper, correspondent, Globe and Mail, Oct. 5, 1976



China announced today that the body of Mao Zedong would be placed in a crystal sarcophagus, and displayed in a mausoleum to be constructed in Peking.

The announcement came at the end of a month of official mourning for the chairman of the Chinese Communist Party who died on Sept. 9 at the age of 82. The site of the mausoleum was not specified.

-- Agence France Presse bulletin, Oct. 9, 1976


Soldiers all gone now. I just don’t get this place.

-- diary of Richard Asper, correspondent, Globe and Mail, Oct. 10, 1976


An editorial this morning in the party newspaper Renmin Ribao called on China’s 800 million people to engage in an “upsurge of studying Mao Zedong Thought” as the “best concrete action to carry out Chairman Mao’s behests.” Quoting from a saying of Mao’s that is often used to stress party unity, the editorial also said “Unite, don’t split, be open and above board, don’t intrigue and conspire.”

This emphasis on study and unity, usually associated with the so-called “moderates” among Peking’s leaders, follows several earlier editorials and pronouncements marking the conclusion of the month-long mourning period following Mao’s death. Analysts here believe these calls now represent the officially agreed upon position.

At the same time, several articles have appeared this week calling on China’s people to “deepen the struggle to criticize Deng Xiaoping and repulse the right deviationist attempt to reverse correct verdicts.” Still, observers have noted that slogans of this sort are in accord with the themes put forward in Prime Minister Hua Guofeng’s eulogy at the memorial rally for Mao in Peking, and are a step back from some of the more strident condemnations of the ousted Deputy Prime Minister heard in previous weeks.

-- New York Times article, Oct. 12, 1976


To: Various provincial, municipal and autonomous regional Party committees of various military regions, provincial military districts; the Military Affairs Commission; Party committees, leadership groups or nucleus groups at various organizations under the Central Committee and the State Council.

Enclosed within are the following documents:

Directive regarding the cooperation of People’s Armed Police and People’s Militia in the suppression of counter-revolutionary sabotage activities

Directive regarding the exchange of experiences among People’s Armed Police and People’s Militia of various localities

Report of the Capital Workers’ Militia to the Central Military Commission

Report of the Shanghai No. 5 Cotton Mill Workers’ Militia to the Central Military Commission

Report of the Chengdu Red Flag Steel Mill Workers’ Militia to the Central Military Commission

-- CCP Central Committee Zhongfa No. 175, Nov. 3, 1976

Interesting so far.

I'd use Beijing and Guangzhour though, since I'm pretty sure most people had transitioned away from using Peking and Canton by that point.

Sounds interesting so far, wondering where you're going with this.

Part II



The Great Leader Chairman Mao Will Live Forever in Our Hearts

Let Us Turn Our Grief Into Strength

Grasp Revolution, Promote Production

Act According to the Principles Laid Down

-- selected signs and banners on the streets of Beijing, Nov. 1976




Rumors that the Central Committee meeting is underway. Japanese came by and said they had seen limos arriving in Tiananmen Square, but had been stopped from getting a closer look. A couple of us went down there after dinner – no limos, but you could see that the lights were on in the Great Hall of the People. Could be a false alarm, but I can’t imagine the Chinese can put this thing off for much longer. Every day we’re hearing more of these reports of trouble in the provinces – they need to let everybody know that someone’s got a hand on the wheel. If they don’t get on top of this thing, it’s going to spiral out of control.

-- diary of Richard Asper, correspondent, Globe and Mail, Dec. 15, 1976




Convened by the State Council, the Second National Conference on Learning from Dazhai, national pace-setter in agriculture, opened on December 15 in Beijing. The conference was attended by 4,200 people from different parts of the country.

Party and state leaders Hua Guofeng, Wang Hongwen, Ye Jianying, Zhang Chunqiao, Chen Xilian, Chen Yonggui, and Wei Guoqing were present at the opening ceremony.

Wang Hongwen, Vice-Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, presided at the conference.

-- Xinhua News Agency bulletin, Dec. 16, 1976



Appearing in public for the first time since the memorial rally for Mao Zedong in September, China’s leaders offered no sign that a successor had been chosen to replace the late chairman, suggesting that the collective leadership would continue in its attempt to strike a balance between class struggle and economic development.

Presiding over the conference was Wang Hongwen, the youngest member of the Politburo and generally considered to be a member of the radical “Shanghai Gang”. Wang ranks second in the Party hierarchy, after Premier Hua Guofeng, who is largely viewed as a moderate and who has been the most visible of China’s leaders in the months since Mao’s death.

The prominent role given to Wang came as a surprise given his generally low profile in recent years. After his dramatic and unexpected appointment to the party’s third-highest position at the Tenth Party Congress in 1973, Wang slowly faded from view, and many experts believe that in spite of his high office he wields little real power. At the memorial ceremony for Mao, Wang had announced the beginning and conclusion of the ceremony, but largely stood silent behind Hua, who delivered the eulogy.

Presenting the opening speech to the assembled delegates, Wang praised the efforts of the model commune of Dazhai, singling out peasant activist Chen Yonggui for special praise for having “courageously grasped Mao Zedong Thought to achieve self-sufficiency in agriculture through arduous struggle and self-sacrifice.”
…
Also noteworthy was the absence of Mao’s widow Jiang Qing, who had figured prominently in a previous agricultural conference held in Dazhai last year, giving what was described as “an important speech.” Many analysts have predicted that Miss Jiang, a prominent leftist who rose to power during the Cultural Revolution, would likely decline in influence after the death of her powerful husband.
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Other prominent leaders in attendance included the 78-year old Minister of Defense Ye Jianying and Shanghai party chief Zhang Chunqiao, who is also a Vice Premier and chief commissar of the People’s Liberation Army. The elderly Ye is widely considered to be a moderate, whereas Zhang’s political stance is somewhat less clear: having risen to power as a radical activist in the Cultural Revolution, he recently has shown signs of embracing a more pragmatic approach.
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With Mao’s death and the earlier passing of four other members of the nine-member Standing Committee of the party’s Politburo, there are now serious gaps in the leadership. There is no party chairman, no head of state, no commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and only four survivors on the Standing Committee – Hua, Wang, Ye, and Zhang – which is the inner circle of leadership.

-- New York Times article, Dec. 16, 1976

I'll be interested to see where you go with this. Plus, I love the title. 猫主席万岁！

Just one nitpick: I'm pretty sure that prior to gaige kaifang, there weren't any foreign correspondents in Beijing. Or at least not from any newspapers called "The Globe and Mail" (Britain? USA?). There might have been a couple of Albanians floating around, but since China was on poor terms with practically every other country in the world, foreign reporters - especially those from the decadent capitalist West - weren't allowed into the country until Deng had assumed power. I think that prior to 1978 or 1979, most papers "China bureau" was located in Hong Kong or in Taibei.

Subversive Panda: Thanks! I really enjoyed the start of your 革命不是请客吃饭 timeline, and I eagerly await the next installment.

I’ve come across a few examples of foreign correspondents in China, but of course only from countries that had diplomatic relations with the PRC. For example, by 1976 there had been Japanese journalists in Beijing for several years. American newspapers all had their correspondents in Hong Kong, but a few were let into China on a temporary basis (for example, Time Magazine’s diplomatic editor was in Beijing covering the visit of former defense secretary James Schlesinger in September 1976, so he was there when Mao died)

I’ve chosen the Globe and Mail since it’s a Canadian newspaper, and they had pretty good relations with the PRC for quite some time. I’ve come across Globe and Mail articles from the early 70’s datelined Beijing, and while I can’t verify for sure whether the writers actually were there, I’m making a leap of faith (American newspaper articles, by contrast, were consistently datelined Singapore or Hong Kong).

Rediv said:

Subversive Panda: Thanks! I really enjoyed the start of your 革命不是请客吃饭 timeline, and I eagerly await the next installment.

I’ve come across a few examples of foreign correspondents in China, but of course only from countries that had diplomatic relations with the PRC. For example, by 1976 there had been Japanese journalists in Beijing for several years. American newspapers all had their correspondents in Hong Kong, but a few were let into China on a temporary basis (for example, Time Magazine’s diplomatic editor was in Beijing covering the visit of former defense secretary James Schlesinger in September 1976, so he was there when Mao died)

I’ve chosen the Globe and Mail since it’s a Canadian newspaper, and they had pretty good relations with the PRC for quite some time. I’ve come across Globe and Mail articles from the early 70’s datelined Beijing, and while I can’t verify for sure whether the writers actually were there, I’m making a leap of faith (American newspaper articles, by contrast, were consistently datelined Singapore or Hong Kong).

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Oh, OK. That makes sense. And I like the idea of a foreign correspondent as a point of view character anyway. Consider my nitpick debunked!

And I will be very interested to see where you go with this one. Deng's rise to power certainly wasn't a fait accompli by any means. I'll be curious to see if you have a hardliner gain power - although that might be a bit dicey in the long term, as people were awfully sick of them by '76. Or there could be another compromise choice, like Hua in OTL, or another moderate who wasn't as anathema to Maoists as Deng was . . . a lot of possibilities. And I like that you've worked Ye Jianying into the timeline; he's always seemed an interesting figure to me.

subversivepanda said:

I'll be interested to see where you go with this. Plus, I love the title. 猫主席万岁！

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The title doesn't make much sense in English, really. Is it a Chinese proverb/expression, or what? I mean as an analogy to a 'horse of a different colour', the meaning is obvious, but I did wonder why cat.

Dathi THorfinnsson said:

The title doesn't make much sense in English, really. Is it a Chinese proverb/expression, or what? I mean as an analogy to a 'horse of a different colour', the meaning is obvious, but I did wonder why cat.

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Dathi

I'm guessing its from the comment Deng made about it doesn't matter the colour of a cat as long as it catches mice.

Steve

stevep said:

Dathi

I'm guessing its from the comment Deng made about it doesn't matter the colour of a cat as long as it catches mice.

Steve

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??Not familiar with that one. If so, then I missed the point entirely. [I'm sure my wife would agree that that's not at all unusual]

Yes, the title is a reference to Deng Xiaoping's "black cat, white cat" saying. Sorry I didn't make that clearer.

And here I thought it had the title it had because Mao sounds like Meow.

Rediv said:

Yes, the title is a reference to Deng Xiaoping's "black cat, white cat" saying. Sorry I didn't make that clearer.

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Heh, I actually thought it was a reference to the fact that the Chinese word for cat (猫) sounds like Mao's family name (毛). They're both pronounced mao, but cat is first tone and Mao is fourth tone. So if you were ever to name your cat Chairman Meow, it would be funny on two levels.

Hmm, you know I'm kind of liking you guys' explanations of the title more than my own (and that poster is just about mind-blowing ) So how about we just pretend that I had all those allusions in mind when I came up with it in the first place?

Per reader request, I've dropped the use of "Peking" to make things more consistent (but not without a tinge of regret, as I've always had a fondness for the archaic impracticality of Wade-Giles)

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The People and the People’s Militia Are One

-- Renmin Ribao [People’s Daily] editorial, Dec. 21, 1976


Tirelessly Serving the People: A Day in the Life of the Capital Workers’ Militia

-- Jiefangjun Bao [Liberation Army News] article, Jan. 2, 1977


We Will Always Remember Premier Zhou

-- Renmin Ribao–Jiefangjun Bao–Hong Qi [Red Flag] joint editorial, Jan. 8, 1977


China’s top leaders made an unexpected appearance at a ceremony commemorating the anniversary of the death of Premier Zhou Enlai one year ago today. The ceremony in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People marked the first time that the entire senior leadership appeared together since the memorial service for Chairman Mao Zedong in September of last year. The presence of the chairman’s widow Jiang Qing put to rest persistent rumors that she had fallen from power following the death of her husband, but other changes suggested that some shift had occurred in the balance of power.

The ceremony was similar to the many which Beijing experienced last year after the deaths of several veteran leaders. Standing beneath a black-draped portrait of the late premier, the party’s number-two man Wang Hongwen read a speech extolling Mr. Zhou’s achievements and pledging to emulate his example. This is the second time in which Mr. Wang has stood in the ceremonial limelight previously reserved for Hua Guofeng, the party’s first vice-chairman and Mr. Zhou’s successor as premier.

-- The Guardian, Jan. 8, 1977


During the funeral for Chairman Mao four months ago, the TV cameras focused on two men, Hua Guofeng, who read the eulogy, and Wang Hongwen, who stood silently behind Hua, anxiously reading over his shoulder. Yesterday we were presented with the same scene, but different characters: now it was Wang who read the eulogy – as always wearing his green army uniform and still looking a bit ill at ease. But this time Hua was nowhere to be seen. Instead, looming over Wang’s shoulder was the ancient and dour Marshal Ye Jianying, China’s defense minister and a veteran of the Long March. That these two military men stood center-stage today is no accident. Plagued by violence and civil unrest, an increasingly fragile China has turned to the People’s Liberation Army to provide the stability it so desperately needs.

-- Los Angeles Times editorial, Jan. 9, 1977


Yesterday’s memorial service for the late Premier Zhou Enlai is widely being interpreted by analysts here as yet another move towards moderation as China’s leaders struggle to untangle the troubled legacy of Chairman Mao Zedong. “There are many in China who believe, probably correctly, that the anti-rightist campaign last year was launched by the radicals as an indirect attack on Zhou.” A senior academic at Hong Kong’s Union Research Institute said. “And when they found they couldn’t touch the premier, they went after Deng instead.” Former Deputy Premier Deng Xiaoping would eventually be dismissed from office following a series of riots in Tiananmen Square last April, which began after the removal of memorial wreaths honoring the late premier.

“There’s obviously a great deal of resentment in China over the political convulsions that have been stirred up by the radicals in the past years,” one analyst said. “The people saw Zhou as representing stability and order, and maybe a chance to better their lives. The current leaders in Beijing are trying to signal that they too are committed to a more pragmatic and less ideological approach, and I’m sure they’re hoping that by sending this signal they can help quiet some of the turmoil which China has seen so much of recently.”

- Chicago Tribune, Jan. 9, 1977


Remember that Hua Guofeng only became premier after Deng was ousted, and it was Hua who was the Minister of Security when they sent the police in to put down the protests in Tiananmen Square. Wang Hongwen on the other hand was really out of the loop at the time, so he’s not been sullied by the whole affair. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see less and less of Hua in the coming months, until he becomes a scapegoat of sorts to pave the way for Deng to return to power. Wang Hongwen is just keeping his seat warm.

-- John Gittings, comments at the School of Oriental & African Studies, London University, Jan. 11, 1977

Another, shorter, update:

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Something very interesting happened in Shanghai today: nothing. Ten years ago today, after a month of violence that came to be known as the January Storm, a “People’s Commune” was established in Shanghai, marking the first time in which an alliance of Red Guards and worker rebels had successfully seized power from the established party authorities in China’s Cultural Revolution. The coming months would see the entire country erupt into turmoil as competing factions in cities and provinces attempted to carry out their own seizure of power.

The man at the center of Shanghai’s storm was Zhang Chunqiao, an assistant secretary of the Shanghai party apparatus who, claiming the personal imprimatur of Chairman Mao himself, declared the city’s current party leaders to be “capitalist roaders” who had to be overthrown. Zhang’s most enthusiastic supporter was a lowly factory security guard named Wang Hongwen, who mobilized a rebel faction he called the Workers’ General Headquarters, bringing Shanghai’s economy to a halt and bringing the party leaders to their knees.

Ten years later, both Zhang Chunqiao and Wang Hongwen are at the height of power in Beijing, though the former party boss now finds himself embarrassingly out-ranked by the former security guard. It would stand to reason that these two men and their supporters would celebrate the anniversary of their great triumph with demonstrations and celebrations to rival the elaborate National Day parades which once filled Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. But today, as for the past month, Shanghai has been silent.
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With increasing reports of crime and unrest in the provinces, no doubt the radical leaders are hesitant to celebrate an event brought about by the violent flouting of civil authority. But political considerations have no doubt played a significant role in their decision as well. Since the death of Mao, the consummate revolutionary, China has seemed to have lost its taste for revolution. While Deng Xiaoping is routinely still denounced as an “unrepentant rightist,” these condemnations have grown formulaic and lack the fire and brimstone of articles written while the chairman still lived. It has been four months now since the theoretical journal Hong Qi has printed an editorial by the mysterious “Liang Xiao”, widely believed to be the nom-de-plume of a writers’ collective based in the ultra-leftist Qinghua and Beijing Universities, and one of the most strident proponents of the radical line.
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Even before Mao’s death, there had been signs that Zhang Chunqiao had begun to temper his previous radicalism, and it has been increasingly clear that Wang Hongwen, too, has read the writing on the wall.

-- “Radicals on the Ropes,” Time Magazine, Feb. 5, 1977

Warmly Celebrate the Appointment of Comrade Wang Hongwen as Acting Chairman of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party!

-- Renmin Ribao, Feb. 23, 1977


Today’s announcement stressed that Mr. Wang had been appointed acting chairman, rather than having been promoted outright to the party’s highest office. When pressed for an explanation, a Foreign Ministry spokesman explained that the decision “still must be ratified by a meeting of the Central Committee.” No indication was given as to when such a meeting would be held.

-- The Guardian, Feb. 23, 1977


China-watchers had long expected the party’s top post to go to Hua Guofeng, the first vice-chairman and premier of the country’s State Council. While Wang has steadily risen in prominence in the past few months, there has been no indication of any lessening in Hua’s stature: until now he has always been ranked first in the party’s order of precedence, and has been the only top leader to receive foreign visitors. It is possible that Hua’s continued presence in the role of premier has been deemed in the best interests of the state: before his appointment to Beijing, Hua had gained a reputation as a capable administrator and a resourceful problem-solver in his native province of Hunan.

Some analysts foresee in the new leadership equation a mirroring of the Mao-Zhou relationship. The revolutionary Mao tended to concern himself with questions of ideology, while the more pragmatic Zhou presided over the day-to-day running of the government.

-- New York Times, Feb. 24, 1977


That Mr. Wang has only been made acting chairman suggests that he does not yet enjoy the full confidence of the Politburo. Believed to be in his forties, he is by far the youngest member of that group, and it is unlikely that revolutionary veterans such as Ye Jianying and Li Xiannian would be willing to hand over all the reins of power to someone as untested as Mr. Wang.

-- Globe and Mail, Feb. 24, 1977


A pair of recent high-profile speeches notwithstanding, Wang Hongwen has spent very little time in the public eye since the death of Mao Zedong. After his sudden and unexpected appointment to the party’s number three position in 1973, Wang was a regular fixture at the chairman’s meetings with foreign leaders. But a number of Western diplomats remarked that Wang seemed clearly uncomfortable in his new role, saying little and even fidgeting in the ill-fitting Mao suit that he wore in place of his usual military uniform. After a few months he was no longer seen in the chairman’s private study, and reports emerged that he had returned to Shanghai after having botched negotiations with striking workers in Hangzhou.

-- Washington Post, Feb. 24, 1977


If you want to understand why Wang Hongwen has been chosen as China’s new leader, just look at the numbers. Specifically, the ages of the gerontocrats currently inhabiting Beijing’s Forbidden City. Mao and Zhou are only the two most prominent of the many top leaders who have “gone to meet Marx” in the past year, and it’s clear that more will soon be on the way. In his later years, the ailing Chairman Mao called upon the party to look to the next generation of “revolutionary successors” to staff their dwindling ranks. It seems the party has heeded his call.
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What China needs in this time of uncertain and dangerous transitions is a young face, someone to remind the people of the heyday of the revolution. Chairman Wang is about the same age as Chairman Mao was when he led the fledgling Red Army to victory in its Long March. Westerners who have met Wang have remarked on his bright eyes and firm handshake. He is a man who can inspire confidence, which, given the country’s recent spate of troubles, is exactly what China needs most now.

-- Los Angeles Times, editorial, Feb. 26, 1977


When we learned that Wang Hongwen had been made acting chairman of the Communist Party, we really didn’t know what to think. We knew that he was young, of course, since we’d seen his picture, and we knew that he had been a rebel leader during the Great Cultural Revolution. But how could we know who he really was? The mountains are high and Beijing is far away! The village Party secretary called us together for a meeting to study the announcement and express our happiness at the news. Afterwards, the Party secretary told us that to express our loyalty to the Party, we should commit ourselves to doubling our efforts in learning from Dazhai in agriculture in order to “grasp revolution, promote production.” He reminded us that in the past, quite a few of us had made serious errors in failing to implement Chairman Mao’s instruction to “learn from Dazhai,” and that we had to remain vigilant against the poisonous thinking of Deng Xiaoping-style capitalist roaders. Deputy Secretary Peng added that it was possible that there were even Deng-style capitalist roaders right here in our own village.

I think we all shuddered when we heard that. We had all thought that such talk was a thing of the past. But we could tell that the secretary and deputy secretary were afraid too. We all knew there were big changes taking place in Beijing, but none of us knew which way the wind was blowing. In times of uncertainty, the safest bet was to lean to the left, and hope that you could save your own skin.

-- Gao Xuejun, quoted in Village Life in China, University of California Press, 1985

subversivepanda said:

Heh, I actually thought it was a reference to the fact that the Chinese word for cat (猫) sounds like Mao's family name (毛). They're both pronounced mao, but cat is first tone and Mao is fourth tone. So if you were ever to name your cat Chairman Meow, it would be funny on two levels.

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subversivepanda

Interesting. Presuming the standard view of the phase, in terms of relaxing ideological straight-jackets, I wonder if Deng was possibly also making a joke?

Rediv said:

Yes, the title is a reference to Deng Xiaoping's "black cat, white cat" saying. Sorry I didn't make that clearer.

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Dathi - Just to clarify, Deng said that it doesn't matter if a cat is black or white [have heard one version, whether its black or brown] as long as it catches mice. Its generally interpreted as arguing against a commitment to idealogical dogma ruling out options and ideas. Part of the opening up of China under Deng to western business ideas.

Rediv said:

When we learned that Wang Hongwen had been made acting chairman of the Communist Party, we really didn’t know what to think. We knew that he was young, of course, since we’d seen his picture, and we knew that he had been a rebel leader during the Great Cultural Revolution. But how could we know who he really was? The mountains are high and Beijing is far away! The village Party secretary called us together for a meeting to study the announcement and express our happiness at the news. Afterwards, the Party secretary told us that to express our loyalty to the Party, we should commit ourselves to doubling our efforts in learning from Dazhai in agriculture in order to “grasp revolution, promote production.” He reminded us that in the past, quite a few of us had made serious errors in failing to implement Chairman Mao’s instruction to “learn from Dazhai,” and that we had to remain vigilant against the poisonous thinking of Deng Xiaoping-style capitalist roaders. Deputy Secretary Peng added that it was possible that there were even Deng-style capitalist roaders right here in our own village.

I think we all shuddered when we heard that. We had all thought that such talk was a thing of the past. But we could tell that the secretary and deputy secretary were afraid too. We all knew there were big changes taking place in Beijing, but none of us knew which way the wind was blowing. In times of uncertainty, the safest bet was to lean to the left, and hope that you could save your own skin.

-- Gao Xuejun, quoted in Village Life in China, University of California Press, 1985

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If I'm reading that correctly I'm shuddering as well as it sounds like Wang is still favouring cultural revolution type ideas. Wasn't Dazhai the model agricultural commune that faked a lot of figures on crop production that was one of the models for the Great Leap Backwards?

Steve

Steve:

Your shuddering is well justified.

There were several campaigns to “Learn from Dazhai” throughout the 60’s and 70’s (even for several years after the end of the Cultural Revolution IOTL), which often proved disastrous for many farming communities. In general, the “Dazhai model” took decision-making out of the hands of the villagers and placed it in the hands of top leaders who really had no idea what they were doing.

The “Dazhai model” relied on a lot of the same thinking that led to the Great Leap famine, such as the idea that ideological purity and hard work could overcome any natural obstacles. In Dazhai campaigns, villagers were often ordered to grow new crops which were totally inappropriate for the local climate, and for which they had no room and no training. The most famous achievement of the Dazhai commune was the leveling of mountains to make new farmland, so Dazhai campaigns often centered around time-consuming labor-intensive land reclamation projects which tended to cause more harm to the local environment and rarely yielded any good new farmland.

Five months after the announcement that the body of Chairman Mao Zedong would be permanently preserved, construction began today on a mausoleum in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. After a brief groundbreaking ceremony presided over by Acting Chairman Wang Hongwen, an army of workers descended on the site with shovels to begin digging the foundations of the structure. No indication has been given as to what the completed tomb will look like, but many experts believe it will share similarities to the final resting places of Lenin in Moscow and Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi.

-- Cleveland Plain Dealer, Mar. 9, 1977


The Xinhua News Agency announced today that a nationwide meeting of the Communist Youth League would be held in May of this year in Beijing. This would be the first such meeting of the organization since the upheavals of the Cultural Revolution in 1966.

Attacked by the Red Guards for its supposedly “elitist” nature, the Youth League was rapidly dismantled and many of its leaders were purged and imprisoned. The organization was restored in 1973, as part of a series of reforms aimed at strengthening China’s “mass organizations”, including the trade unions and the Women’s Federation. The ouster of Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping last April caused many to worry that the Youth League’s days were again numbered, as its chief Hu Yaobang was believed to be a close associate of Deng’s. Today’s announcement has put these fears to rest for the time being, and have led some to believe that the move will pave the way for the rehabilitation of other disgraced “rightists” – possibly even Deng himself.

-- Los Angeles Times, Mar. 31, 1977


Recent visitors to Beijing have noted three new publications appearing at the city’s newsstands: the magazine China Youth and the newspapers China Youth Daily and Peking Youth Daily. Published by the Communist Youth League, the three periodicals were suppressed during the Cultural Revolution but have suddenly reappeared in the wake of the recent announcement of a national congress of the Youth League to be held this coming May. Since then, regional branches of the league have announced their own impending gatherings, but it is not known if provincial Youth League publications have also returned to print, as local newspapers are off-limits to foreigners.

-- South China Morning Post, Apr. 9, 1977


A Quotation from Chairman Mao: You young people, full of vigor and vitality, are in the bloom of life, like the sun at eight or nine in the morning. Our hope is placed on you. The world belongs to you. China's future belongs to you.

-- Renmin Ribao, May 4, 1977


The National Conference of the Communist Youth League opened on May 4 in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People. The congress was attended by 2,500 delegates representing every province of China (except Taiwan Province). 6,000 university and middle school students from every part of the country, including a large number of ethnic nationalities, also attended the conference.

Wang Hongwen, Acting Chairman of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, was present at the opening ceremony and made a very important speech.

Hu Yaobang, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, presided at the conference.

-- Xinhua News Agency bulletin, May 4, 1977


Chairman Mao has taught us that the success of the revolution depends on the participation of the old, the middle-aged, and the young in the leadership of all levels of society. You young people are fortunate to have Comrade Hu Yaobang at the head of the central organs of the Youth League. Comrade Hu has spent many years serving the people, and you should take care to learn from his revolutionary experience.

Now, there are those who say that Comrade Hu has made mistakes in his past, but who among us has not made mistakes? The clear verdict of Chairman Mao and the Party Center is that these mistakes were a contradiction among the people, rather than a contradiction between ourselves and the enemy. I have full confidence in Comrade Hu, and I am certain that under his guidance, the young people of China will hold higher and higher the great red banner of Mao Zedong Thought to win great victories!

-- Wang Hongwen, remarks at the National Conference of the Communist Youth League, May 4, 1977


We read the speeches from the Youth League conference in Beijing in our study group that night, and our hearts were consumed with bitterness. We remembered when we had been in Beijing, when we had seen Chairman Mao and been told the same words: “the world belongs to you!” Our hearts had been on fire for Chairman Mao and for the revolution! But now where were we? It was Chairman Mao, the red sun in our hearts, who dumped us here and left us to scrape in the mud and eat barley husks, crying for our friends and our parents hundreds of miles away.

We were forgotten. We were alone. That night we cursed Chairman Mao and the Communist Party, and we grinned with a filthy, vengeful glee at the thought of those freshly-scrubbed whelps in Beijing who sat wide-eyed drinking in all the lies, for we knew they would end up just like us.

-- Li Menghua, former Red Guard, quoted in Sent Down: China’s Lost Generation (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992)