Singapore DPM Teo Chee Hean tours the Jinggangshan Revolutionary Museum
Singapore DPM Teo Chee Hean toured the Jinggangshan Revolutionary Museum, which chronicles the rise of the Communist Party through the work of pioneers Mao Zedong and Zhu De. Mr Teo is currently on a visit to China. -- ST VIDEO: KOR KIAN BENG
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Mao Zedong
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- Socrates
SUMMARY
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Mao Zedong (December 26, 1893 – September 9, 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who became the founding father of the People's Republic of China, which he ruled as the Chairman of the Communist Party of China from its establishment in 1949 until his death in 1976. His theories, military strategies, and political policies are collectively known as Maoism.
Mao was the son of a wealthy farmer in Shaoshan, Hunan. He had a Chinese nationalist and anti-imperialist outlook early in his life, and was particularly influenced by the events of the Xinhai Revolution of 1911 and May Fourth Movement of 1919. He later adopted Marxism–Leninism while working at Peking University, and became a founding member of the Communist Party of China (CPC), leading the Autumn Harvest Uprising in 1927. During the Chinese Civil War between the Kuomintang (KMT) and the CPC, Mao helped to found the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, led the Jiangxi Soviet's radical land policies, and ultimately became head of the CPC during the Long March. Although the CPC temporarily allied with the KMT under the United Front during the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945), China's civil war resumed after Japan's surrender and in 1949 Mao's forces defeated the Nationalist government, which withdrew to Taiwan.
On October 1, 1949, Mao proclaimed the foundation of the People's Republic of China (PRC), a single-party state controlled by the CPC. In the following years he solidified his control through land reforms and through a psychological victory in the Korean War, as well as through campaigns against landlords, people he termed counter-revolutionaries, and other perceived enemies of the state. In 1957 he launched a campaign known as the Great Leap Forward that aimed to rapidly transform China's economy from agrarian to industrial. This campaign led to the deadliest famine in history and the deaths of an estimated minimum of 45 million people between 1958 and 1962. In 1966, Mao initiated the Cultural Revolution, a program to remove counter-revolutionary elements in Chinese society which lasted 10 years and was marked by violent class struggle, widespread destruction of cultural artifacts, and an unprecedented elevation of Mao's cult of personality. The program is now officially regarded as a severe setback for the PRC. In 1972, Mao welcomed American President Richard Nixon in Beijing, signalling the start of a policy of opening China to the world. After years of ill health, Mao suffered a series of heart attacks in 1976 and died at the age of 82. He was succeeded as paramount leader by Premier Hua Guofeng, who was quickly sidelined and replaced by Deng Xiaoping.
A controversial figure, Mao is regarded as one of the most important and influential individuals in modern world history. He is also known as a political intellect, theorist, military strategist, poet, and visionary. Supporters credit him with driving imperialism out of China, modernising the nation and building it into a world power, promoting the status of women, improving education and health care, as well as increasing life expectancy as China's population grew from around 550 million to over 900 million under his leadership. Conversely, his regime has been called autocratic and totalitarian, and condemned for bringing about mass repression and destroying religious and cultural artifacts and sites. It was additionally responsible for vast numbers of deaths with estimates ranging from 30 to 70 million victims.
Should Mao Leftist Websites Enjoy Freedom of Speech?
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Left-wing websites in Mainland China, such as Utopia
and Mao Zedong flag, closed after Bo Xilai stepped down. These websites used to tout Bo.
Some of the legal and media professionals said that freedom
of speech should be restored for the left-wing. This should include left-wing websites.
Some human rights activists point out that freedom
of speech must be based on a fair platform.
On the morning of March 15th, people were concerned
about the news on Bo being removed.
Subsequently, some Internet users found the Utopia
website could not be accessed.
At the same time, other left-wing websites such as
Mao Zedong's flag, Mao Zedong Net, April net,
Red China Network etc. cannot be accessed either.
Some lawyers broke the news.
Kong Qingdong, a representative of the left-wing, was
forbidden to teach at Peking University, and Sima Nan's microblog articles were deleted.
Sima Nan is another famous left-wing representative.
His lectures were cancelled at the same time.
In this regard, some scholars and media professionals
called for the restoration of expression of freedom for leftists.
However, advocates and the majority of Internet users
believe that freedom of speech is still subject to checks, aligning with universal values and ethical issues.
For example, Germany is considered a country allowing
expression of freedom, while it is illegal to publish speeches supporting Nazism.
Tang Jitian, a Mainland Chinese human rights lawyer in
Highlighted that the protection of the freedom of expression should be divided into different levels.
Lawyer Tang Jitian: It is needed to make different protection
levels. If someone exchanges ideas based on facts, then it should be protected.
But if someone just aligns himself with the government,
and suppresses other different voices through offical power, then this kind of activity should not be protected.
Zhaoyan, a visiting scholar at Columbia University
also spoke to NTD Television.
If overindulging in leftism, China may suffer from the Cultural
Revolution again.
Zhaoyan: The leftists want the restoration of the Cultural
Revolution with no human right status.
You may request expression of freedom,
but you cannot hurt others.
If you ask all media to go back to the Mao Zedong period,
and take the so called freedom of expression of that time,
then you may make the Chinese suffer from a Cultural
Revolution again.
Zhu Xinxin, former editor of Hebei People's Radio said,
Utopia tasted the bitterness of language violence and power politics, which it always advocated.
Zhu Xinxin: Utopia always utilizes the official power
to block oppositional voices. Now it is being blocked.
They should learn something from this event: it is just like
a double-edged sword to block others' expression.
The sword will hurt themselves with the autocratic power.
The well-known artist Ai Weiwei said that the speech
and behavior of the left-wing were beyond the scope of freedom of expression.
He did not think left-wing speech should be protected.
Ai Weiwei took himself as an example, with
people like Sima Nan, Wu Fatian and Hu Xijin.
These people used to discredit and abuse him unscrupulously,
but could not defend himself or fight back on these websites.
Ai Weiwei said the abuse is not a part of freedom
of expression, and should be restrained in any society. They are evils.
Lawyer Tang Jitian: If they discredit and abuse others
through websites, then it is not only a commitment to civil and administrative responsibilities, but also criminal liability.
Ai Weiwei said that in the past few years, there was
no freedom of expression in China.
So-called free expression created a larger area of silence
each time, making society without creativity and flexiblity.
《神韵》2011世界巡演新亮点