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The People's Commune Experiment: Why did this system cause farmers to lose their identity and freedom?
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, China underwent an unprecedented social and economic movement known as the Great Leap Forward. Behind the movement was the attempt by Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), to quickly transform a predominantly agricultural society into an industrialized country through the establishment of people's communes. However, this grand plan resulted in the deaths of millions and left indelible scars on Chinese history.
"The Great Leap Forward was an expensive disaster, with huge investments producing little output based on sound economic principles."
The core of the Great Leap Forward was the People's Commune, a new form of collective agriculture that aimed to increase agricultural and industrial output through collectivization. However, the implementation of this system is far from the ideal effect. Private farming was banned, farmers’ identities and freedoms were taken away, and they ultimately became tools of state planning.
Collectivization and coercive measuresIn the early stages of the Great Leap Forward, Mao Zedong promoted a widespread policy of forced collectivization. Small-scale farming was abolished and farmers were forced to join people's communes, a system that left tens of thousands of families without land and agricultural livelihoods. Pressure between local officials and the central government to meet ever-higher food quotas translated into exploitation of farmers, leading to countless deaths from hunger.
“The eradication of private agriculture has led to the loss of the peasants’ identity. Peasants are no longer autonomous producers, but anonymous workers under state control.”
As policies are strengthened, farmers face a double deprivation of identity and freedom. In many places, open struggles were waged against farmers who cultivated their land privately, and social pressure and forced labor became the norm. The original family farming model was replaced by large-scale collective farming. Farmers' lives were constrained by policies and they gradually lost their basic right to engage in free economic activities.
Declining Productivity and Economic Collapse
Although the Chinese government at the time claimed that the people's communes would increase agricultural productivity, later studies showed that the implementation of collectivization led to a significant decline in productivity. Because farmers were unable to obtain reasonable returns, agricultural output suffered severe shortages and famine began to occur in many places.
"In the greed and haste of the Great Leap Forward, the peasants lost not only their means of production, but also the dignity of life."
Against the backdrop of worsening conditions, high-ranking officials avoided reporting the truth about the disaster for fear of severe government punishment. When faced with stringent quotas, local officials chose to inflate reports and fabricate grain production, resulting in a nationwide food crisis. The centralized management of grain has put farmers under extreme pressure while preventing them from having any way to secure their livelihoods.
Social and cultural influences
In addition to economic destruction, the Great Leap Forward also had a serious impact on the cultural environment in China's vast rural areas. Traditional culture and religious beliefs were suppressed, and political meetings and propaganda conferences replaced farmers' festivals and rituals. The wisdom and customs of the older generation are gradually being ignored, and social cohesion is suffering a severe blow.
"As the policy progresses, farmers not only lose their livelihoods, but also their identities as cultural inheritors."
A series of social reforms, such as improving the status of women and ending bad habits, have brought changes to some parts of rural society, but these changes are often difficult to maintain under tremendous pressure. The household registration system, established in 1956, further restricts farmers’ mobility, preventing them from escaping their impoverished physical environment and hindering their hopes of seeking better living conditions.
Reflecting on the lessons of history
After the Great Leap Forward, Chinese society underwent a long period of adjustment and reconstruction. Reflection on this historical event is not only a review of the past, but also a warning for the future. People began to think about how to avoid repeating the same mistakes and losing the most basic humanity and dignity in the pursuit of social progress.
"In the pursuit of reform, should we rethink the institutional designs that have caused us to lose our identity and freedom?"
To this day, the lessons of the Great Leap Forward are still worth noting. Can we learn lessons from these historical tragedies, cherish the dignity and autonomy of every individual, and move forward more steadily and decently in future development?
