The Seven Thousand Cadres Conference ( zh, s=七千人大会, t=七千人大會), or 7000 Cadres Conference, was one of the largest work conferences ever of the
Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
(CCP) which took place in
Beijing, China
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
from 11 January - 7 February 1962.
The conference was attended by over 7,000 party officials nationwide, focusing on the issues of the
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward (Second Five Year Plan) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) was an economic and social campaign led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1958 to 1962. CCP Chairman Mao Zedong launched the campaign to reconstruc ...
which resulted in the deaths of tens of millions in the
Great Chinese Famine
The Great Chinese Famine () was a period between 1959 and 1961 in the history of the People's Republic of China (PRC) characterized by widespread famine. Some scholars have also included the years 1958 or 1962. It is widely regarded as the dead ...
.
CCP chairman Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...
made
self-criticism
Self-criticism involves how an individual evaluates oneself. Self-criticism in psychology is typically studied and discussed as a negative personality trait in which a person has a disrupted self-identity. The opposite of self-criticism would be ...
during the conference, after which he took a semi-retired role, leaving future responsibilities to Chinese President
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi ( ; 24 November 189812 November 1969) was a Chinese revolutionary, politician, and theorist. He was Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee from 1954 to 1959, First Vice Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1956 to 1966 and C ...
and Vice Premier
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...
.
The Conference
The Conference took place in
Beijing, China
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
from 11 January - February 1962.
During the conference,
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi ( ; 24 November 189812 November 1969) was a Chinese revolutionary, politician, and theorist. He was Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee from 1954 to 1959, First Vice Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1956 to 1966 and C ...
, the 2nd
President of China and
Vice Chairman of the Communist Party, delivered an important speech that formally attributed 30% of the famine to natural disasters and 70% to man-made mistakes, which were mainly the radical economic policies of the Great Leap Forward since 1958.
The policies of Mao Zedong were criticized, and Mao also made
self-criticism
Self-criticism involves how an individual evaluates oneself. Self-criticism in psychology is typically studied and discussed as a negative personality trait in which a person has a disrupted self-identity. The opposite of self-criticism would be ...
as the conference promoted "criticism and self-criticism".
CCP vice chairman Lin Biao
)
, serviceyears = 1925–1971
, branch = People's Liberation Army
, rank = Marshal of the People's Republic of China Lieutenant general of the National Revolutionary Army, Republic of China
, commands ...
, however, continued his praises of Mao at the conference.
The conference promoted "
democratic centralism
Democratic centralism is a practice in which political decisions reached by voting processes are binding upon all members of the political party. It is mainly associated with Leninism, wherein the party's political vanguard of professional revo ...
" within the Communist Party.
Influence
After the 7,000 Cadres Conference,
Liu Shaoqi
Liu Shaoqi ( ; 24 November 189812 November 1969) was a Chinese revolutionary, politician, and theorist. He was Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee from 1954 to 1959, First Vice Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party from 1956 to 1966 and C ...
together with
Deng Xiaoping
Deng Xiaoping (22 August 1904 – 19 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary leader, military commander and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China (PRC) from December 1978 to November 1989. After CC ...
, was in charge of most policies within the party and the government, while Mao took a semi-retired role.
The conference corrected some of the far-left economic policies. Economic reforms such as ''sanzi yibao'' () which allowed
free market
In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any o ...
and household responsibility for agricultural production were carried out by Liu Shaoqi,
Deng Zihui
Deng Zihui (; 17 August 1896 – 10 December 1972) was a Chinese communist revolutionary and one of the most influential leaders of the People's Republic of China during the 1940s and 1950s. He was one of the major military leaders of China dur ...
and others. The reforms alleviated the economic difficulties after the Great Leap Forward to an extent.
Aftermath
The conference revealed serious divisions within the party's top leadership between those who thoroughly endorsed the
Three Red Banners
Three Red Banners () was an ideological slogan in the late 1950s which called on the Chinese people to build a socialist state. The "Three Red Banners" also called the "Three Red Flags," consisted of the General Line for socialist construction, ...
and those who maintained doubts about them.
The disagreement between Mao and Liu (and Deng) became more and more apparent, especially on Mao's call to "never forget
class struggle
Class conflict, also referred to as class struggle and class warfare, is the political tension and economic antagonism that exists in society because of socio-economic competition among the social classes or between rich and poor.
The forms ...
".
In August 1962, Mao emphasized during a meeting in
Beidaihe
Beidaihe District () is a popular beach resort and a district of the city of Qinhuangdao, Hebei province on China's Bohai Sea coast. It has an area of and, , a population of 66,000, as well as a coastline of . It is also known as a birding ha ...
that class struggle must be talked about "every year, every month and every day ()". Mao reinforced his point of view in September 1962 during a national conference of the
Chinese Communist Party
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victoriou ...
().
Mao also criticized the economic reforms carried out by Liu Shaoqi and others, even describing the reforms to foreign leaders as "attempts to undermine
socialist collectivism and destroy socialism" in February 1964.
In 1963, Mao launched the nationwide
Socialist Education Movement
__NOTOC__
The Socialist Education Movement (, abbreviated 社教运动 or 社教運動), also known as the Four Cleanups Movement () was a movement launched by Mao Zedong in 1963 in the People's Republic of China. Mao sought to remove reactionary e ...
and in 1966, he launched the
Cultural Revolution
The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...
in order to return to the center of power, during which Liu was persecuted to death as a "traitor" as well as a "
capitalist roader
In anti-capitalist Mao Zedong thought, a capitalist roader (; also ) is a person or group who demonstrates a marked tendency to bow to pressure from bourgeois forces and subsequently attempts to pull the Revolution in a capitalist direction. If a ...
" and Deng was also purged (twice).
Lin Biao
)
, serviceyears = 1925–1971
, branch = People's Liberation Army
, rank = Marshal of the People's Republic of China Lieutenant general of the National Revolutionary Army, Republic of China
, commands ...
, on the other hand, was formally selected by Mao as his successor in 1969.
See also
*
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward (Second Five Year Plan) of the People's Republic of China (PRC) was an economic and social campaign led by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1958 to 1962. CCP Chairman Mao Zedong launched the campaign to reconstruc ...
*
Sino-Soviet Split
The Sino-Soviet split was the breaking of political relations between the People's Republic of China and the Soviet Union caused by doctrinal divergences that arose from their different interpretations and practical applications of Marxism–Len ...
*
Lushan Conference
The Lushan Conference was a meeting of the top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) held between July and August 1959. The CCP Politburo met in an "expanded session" (''Kuoda Huiyi'') between July 2 and August 1, followed by the 8th Plenu ...
*
Great Chinese Famine
The Great Chinese Famine () was a period between 1959 and 1961 in the history of the People's Republic of China (PRC) characterized by widespread famine. Some scholars have also included the years 1958 or 1962. It is widely regarded as the dead ...
*
Socialist Education Movement
__NOTOC__
The Socialist Education Movement (, abbreviated 社教运动 or 社教運動), also known as the Four Cleanups Movement () was a movement launched by Mao Zedong in 1963 in the People's Republic of China. Mao sought to remove reactionary e ...
*
Cultural Revolution
The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...
References
{{reflist, 2
Cold War history of China
1962 in China
1962 conferences
January 1962 events in Asia
February 1962 events in Asia
Great Leap Forward
Assemblies of the Chinese Communist Party