Class Notes 3/9

Treatment of Opposition:

• People who spoke against Mao were often called "Rightists"
• Rightists were arrested and forced to do hard labor
• China shelled the Nationalists on Taiwan. Kruschev was not happy about this, because it could have caused a superpower war between Russia and the United States. Russia cut off its relations with China in 1960.
• Mao restricted Tibetans' freedom of religion, kicked out the Dalai Lama
  

Totalitarianism:

• Terror: The people of China were afraid of disobeying Mao, so they agreed to follow his economic policies during the Great Leap Forward.
• Even some of the most important Communist officials felt disconnected from Mao.
  

Propaganda:

• Communes competed with each other in order produce the most grain. They often made up information to make people think that they were producing more grain than they actually were. For example, some faked pictures showed grain that was so thick that it could support the weight of children.
• Mao did not let people know about the famine during the Bitter Years (1959-62). He did not allow peasants to go to different communes.