The Great Leap Forward People's Communization Movement was a serious setback in the process of exploring the road of building socialism in China in the 60s of the 20th century. This article will look at the following aspects of this historical event:
1. Background. The "Great Leap Forward" and the communization of the people took place shortly after the founding of the People's Republic of China, against the background of the Party's lack of experience in socialist construction. The proposal and practice of the "Great Leap Forward" and the people's communization movement were closely related to the historical conditions at that time. At that time, China's economic foundation was very weak, and the main task of the national economy was to restore and develop production, consolidate the nascent people's political power, and strive for a fundamental improvement in the state's financial and economic situation. In order to achieve these goals, the CCP believes that it is necessary to adopt erroneous practices such as high targets, blind commands, exaggerated style, and "communist style" to break the old economic order and establish a new one. At the same time, the "hyperindustrialization" carried out by the Soviet Union in 1957, which was characterized by high indicators, also had an impact on China.
Second, the process. Beginning in early 1958, the CPC convened a number of meetings and adopted a series of documents, such as the "Resolution on the Establishment of People's Communes in the Rural Areas" and the "Decision on the Issue of the 1958 Plan and the Second Five-Year Plan." Driven by these documents, the "Great Leap Forward" and the people's communization movement were rapidly launched throughout the country. However, due to the lack of experience and the complexity of the real situation, the movement was marked by many missteps and deviations. For example, blindly pursuing the speed of steel production and industrialization without looking at actual conditions;Ignoring the importance of food production has led to a sharp decline in the production of grain and other important agricultural products;Excessive emphasis was placed on collectivization and public ownership, and policies such as equal distribution and unpaid labor were implemented. These practices not only run counter to the objective law of economic development, but also harm the interests and enthusiasm of the masses of the people.
3. Lessons. The "Great Leap Forward" and the people's communization movement were a serious setback in China's exploration of the road to building socialism. It violates the law of economic development and the law of nature, ignores the peasants' enthusiasm for production and material interests, and leads to serious consequences. The lessons of this movement tell us that we must uphold the principle of seeking truth from facts at all times, respect objective reality and the will of the masses, and not blindly pursue goals that are too high or too fast. At the same time, it is also necessary to strengthen democratic decision-making and scientific management to avoid major mistakes and losses in decision-making.