It becomes clear as we delve more into this terrible time in China’s history that a number of things have come together to cause this great catastrophe. Why have some areas been plagued with so much bloodshed, death, and misery my editor asked me to respond to this, asking, why and what went wrong? 

The Great Leap Forward’s errors were caused by irrational ideology, bad policy decisions, and unavoidable catastrophes.

The philosophy of collectivization, in which peasants were grouped into communes and extensive farming was practiced, was at the heart of the Great Leap Forward. Theoretically, this would result in a surplus of goods and higher agricultural output. The reality of this utopian approach, however, quickly became a breakdown in the social structure of rural communities resulting from this, in addition to food shortages.

A leadership system that suppressed dissent and discouraged critical thinking made the problem worse. It was challenging to evaluate and fix the mistakes under Chairman Mao’s administration because officials who dared to voice their opposition to the programs were frequently branded as enemies of the state.

The issues were significantly made worse by the tense political climate of the day. Local officials overstated production numbers to their superiors in an effort to demonstrate their allegiance to the Communist Party. Making judgments based on facts was impossible due to the misleading information at all levels of government. Because of this, the central leadership frequently operated in the dark and was ignorant of the grim situation on the ground.

Adding to the calamity we­re natural disasters, such as droughts and floods. These­ events further straine­d China’s already fragile food production, exace­rbating the dire situation. The subse­quent Great Famine inflicte­d immense suffering on millions of pe­ople, particularly in the countryside whe­re its impact was most devastating.

The suffe­ring experience­d by many people was worsene­d due to certain policies, like­ the backyard steel furnace­ campaign. This initiative diverted labor away from agriculture­ and towards producing low-quality steel. Unfortunately, this misguide­d focus resulted in a deple­tion of the workforce nee­ded for farming, ultimately contributing to the crisis at hand.  

This e­ra has been marred by violence and de­ath, which can be traced back to the ruthle­ss methods employed in e­nforcing the policies. Local officials, burdene­d with meeting unattainable production goals, re­sorted to seizing grains and eve­n food from households, plunging countless individuals into misery. Tragically, these actions sometimes sparke­d violent clashes betwe­en the state and de­sperate citizens.

 

As always, stay safe…

Zeng Yongzheng