Mao’s Great Famine: The History of China’s Most Devastating Catastrophe
Historian Frank Dikötter has produced a valuable chronicle that captures the cost measured in human tragedy, occurring within a period known to academians as the Great Chinese Famine. Between the years 1958 and 1962 (the official record is three years), Dikötter estimates that there were at least 45 million premature deaths in China. Based on four years of rare research, Mao’s Great Famine
There were three prominent leaders in modern Chinese history: Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, and Deng Xiaoping. Of these three legendary icons, Mao Zedong was one of the most historic figures of the twentieth century. He remains a very controversial individual, with a persona ranging from cult leader to mass murderer. Mao is held in high regard in the People’s Republic of China.
Mao’s presence is still felt in China. His picture still hangs on the Tiananmen Gate, marking the sentiment 120 years after his birth. Thousands still line up to visit the mausoleum where his embalmed body is displayed. Mao’s face can be seen on the yuan.
Mao must have left an indelible mark in the Sinic world, with a track record of human rights abuses that were atrocious. The Great Leap Forward was an economic program initiated by the Communist Party of China (CPC) as an attempt to catch up with the industrialized Western civilization. This turned out to be one of the hidden horrors of the 20th century.
Dikötter said that the reason so little has been written about the subject is because the “regime that perpetrated these crimes of humanity is very much in power today.” And there’s another reason for it. “There’s very little documentation available. Unlike the collapse of Nazi Germany, unlike the collapse of the Soviet Union, China’s still very much in power today.”
The author claims to have searched through hundreds of various documents and letters.
Dikötter emphasizes the sheer volume of people that died as the human calamity unfolded. The severity of violence was far worse than any casual observer could imagine, according to the writer. Some victims (including children) were buried alive during this reign of terror.
Starvation was common and the brutalization was extraordinary. People were reduced to mere digits in the name of collectivization, and for those that became disabled and couldn’t physically produce in the workforce, they were banned from food sources and often died.
Usually is the case where stories of survival offer mankind glimpses of hope and contradiction, while the survivor must make extremely difficult choices just to stay alive. Such choices may be perceived as immoral but necessary.
Imagine what’s left in the undiscovered documents, because only a certain time frame was allowed for the author’s research, specifically the one or two years before the Beijing Olympics. The central archives are still under lock and key and one day could possibly reveal even more staggering details.
