Interview Transcript
SOURCE:
Direct Interview
January 13th, 2013
Wei Tong
Chinese Resident during the Economic Reforms,
Young Red Guard during Cultural Revolution
Direct Interview
January 13th, 2013
Wei Tong
Chinese Resident during the Economic Reforms,
Young Red Guard during Cultural Revolution
1.) Let's start with the Great Leap Forward. Just explain Mao's plans and what he wanted China to become and what actually happened.
Mao had a big ambition. He wanted China to be strong,but at the same time, he was not realistic. And also, for the purpose of political struggle, it began his infamous Great Leap Forward. It seemed to work at first, but in one year, the Leap turned into a disaster. And the following years, China fell into the 3 years of natural disaster, where a lot of people died of famine.
2.) Just making sure, you were a Red Guard during the Cultural Revolution, right?
Yes, yes...a young red guard
3.) OK, good, so can you say why Mao started the Cultural Revolution and some information about Red Guards?
Well, Mao started the Cultural Revolution in 1966 by asking young Red Guards to against his Political Army to regain his authority. And those young Red Guards started this so called Revolution by not attending school and just reading Mao's book. The Red Guards could be as young as their low teens. Those Red Guards traveled across the country to carry out their Revolution. Those who objected Mao's revolution, those thought to be taking on the Capitalist Road, intellectuals and scholars, were either tortured and killed, humiliated and committed suicide, jailed, or sent to labor camps to die. They burned very valuable and old items-The 4 Olds: Old ideas, culture, customs, and habits. China was sent into chaos, by these Red Guards.
4.) Alright. As you continued throughout the course of your life, did the changes from the Economic Reforms come dramatically or slowly?
It was pretty dramatic.
5.) You are familiar with Wan Li and the Rural Reforms right?
Yes.
6.) When the Rural Reforms were first proposed, describe the opposition or support. Did many people support Wan Li and Deng Xiaoping or oppose them and why did they do so?
Many did not support Wan Li, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yun. They believed in the Dazhai model: doing the opposite of the formation of nature.
7.) Describe the success of SEZ and the 14 coastal cities.
Yeah, it's a great success. It introduced a lot of foreign capitols and a lot of higher tech companies and factories were built, who took advantage of the low labor costs of Chinese workers. So both the government and the foreign companies made huge profits and at the same time, it enhanced the manufacturing capability of China. China is now called a World Factory.
The 14 coastal cities were selected because it was coastal and more advanced so it was more easy to be connected to the modern companies and had better skilled workers and more educated engineers, so that it can adapt the state of the art--or the modern--techniques easily. And the government also introduced a lot of new policies to establish Joint Venture which is both the Chinese government and foreign company to establish a new company. I admire China's success, as it came a long way from one of the poorest, most behind and unsuccessful countries in 1978, to one of the riches, most prosperous and modernized cities today. All this happened in just 3 decades.....Amazing.
Mao had a big ambition. He wanted China to be strong,but at the same time, he was not realistic. And also, for the purpose of political struggle, it began his infamous Great Leap Forward. It seemed to work at first, but in one year, the Leap turned into a disaster. And the following years, China fell into the 3 years of natural disaster, where a lot of people died of famine.
2.) Just making sure, you were a Red Guard during the Cultural Revolution, right?
Yes, yes...a young red guard
3.) OK, good, so can you say why Mao started the Cultural Revolution and some information about Red Guards?
Well, Mao started the Cultural Revolution in 1966 by asking young Red Guards to against his Political Army to regain his authority. And those young Red Guards started this so called Revolution by not attending school and just reading Mao's book. The Red Guards could be as young as their low teens. Those Red Guards traveled across the country to carry out their Revolution. Those who objected Mao's revolution, those thought to be taking on the Capitalist Road, intellectuals and scholars, were either tortured and killed, humiliated and committed suicide, jailed, or sent to labor camps to die. They burned very valuable and old items-The 4 Olds: Old ideas, culture, customs, and habits. China was sent into chaos, by these Red Guards.
4.) Alright. As you continued throughout the course of your life, did the changes from the Economic Reforms come dramatically or slowly?
It was pretty dramatic.
5.) You are familiar with Wan Li and the Rural Reforms right?
Yes.
6.) When the Rural Reforms were first proposed, describe the opposition or support. Did many people support Wan Li and Deng Xiaoping or oppose them and why did they do so?
Many did not support Wan Li, Deng Xiaoping and Chen Yun. They believed in the Dazhai model: doing the opposite of the formation of nature.
7.) Describe the success of SEZ and the 14 coastal cities.
Yeah, it's a great success. It introduced a lot of foreign capitols and a lot of higher tech companies and factories were built, who took advantage of the low labor costs of Chinese workers. So both the government and the foreign companies made huge profits and at the same time, it enhanced the manufacturing capability of China. China is now called a World Factory.
The 14 coastal cities were selected because it was coastal and more advanced so it was more easy to be connected to the modern companies and had better skilled workers and more educated engineers, so that it can adapt the state of the art--or the modern--techniques easily. And the government also introduced a lot of new policies to establish Joint Venture which is both the Chinese government and foreign company to establish a new company. I admire China's success, as it came a long way from one of the poorest, most behind and unsuccessful countries in 1978, to one of the riches, most prosperous and modernized cities today. All this happened in just 3 decades.....Amazing.