Mao Zedong, the leader who held sway over nearly a quarter of the world's population, left behind a legacy stained with the deaths of approximately 70 million people during peacetime, making him the holder of one of the most grim records among 20th-century leaders.
Born on December 26, 1893, in China's Hunan province into a large family, Mao (1893-1976) experienced both maternal affection and paternal strictness. Expelled from three different schools, he married his cousin who was four years older at the age of 14. However, she passed away a year later, and Mao claimed he never saw her as his wife. On January 1, 1912, the revolution led by Sun Yat-sen, considered the father of modern China, resulted in the overthrow of the empire and the proclamation of the republic. The 2500-year-old imperial history of China came to an end, marking the beginning of a new era. Socialists and nationalists in the country began vying for control of the new China. Mao, introduced to revolutionary ideals at an early age, joined these movements. Initially enlisted in the army and later trying his luck in teaching, Mao joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1919. Here, he became deeply passionate about communism and quickly rose through the party ranks, gaining a reputation for his radicalism. At the age of 30 in 1927, Mao, responsible for 1500 guerrillas, began displaying ruthlessness in southern China. He was appointed as the head of the communist state established in the region. His first act was to eliminate those who opposed him, resulting in the deaths of nearly 5,000 dissenters.
During this time, the Nationalist Party executed Mao's former wife, further fueling his ruthlessness and thirst for revenge. Mao stated, "Even if I were to die a hundred times, I could never repay her death."
Like any successful dictator, he was a master of public relations. In 1934, when cornered by the nationalists, Mao managed to turn his escape into a famous "Long March" through skillful maneuvers. He embarked on a 9650-kilometer journey with 81,000 men to rendezvous with the Red Army in southern China. Frozen corpses were left behind at every kilometer. By the end of the Long March, only around 20,000 of his men survived. Although Mao was carried in a sedan chair for most of the distance, he claimed to have walked barefoot for prestige.
When World War II broke out, the conflict between nationalists and communists was put on hold temporarily as they united against the Japanese occupiers. After the end of World War II, the alliance between nationalists and communists dissolved, reigniting the power struggle. After a long and bloody process, Mao emerged victorious, and the American-backed nationalists fled to Formosa, establishing what is now known as nationalist China, or Taiwan.
Now the undisputed ruler of China, Mao closed off the country from the outside world in 1949 due to fear of capitalist influences. He also banned citizens from traveling and expelled all foreigners. During the same period, he invaded the northern regions of Tibet. He sought to reorganize society, ordering the gathering of rural residents in communes in 1958 for easier control. These massive steps were intended to transform the agrarian society into an industrial one, with Mao's goal being to surpass Britain in steel production. However, reality did not align with Mao's plans. The forcibly emptied villages led the masses to be trapped in labor camps, working on an empty stomach. Former farmers woke up the next morning to find themselves factory workers. According to Mao, there was no problem with working people until they dropped dead.
As the agricultural population was abruptly relocated, the cooperative farming system failed to increase food production, resulting in a devastating famine. Mao's response to those dying of hunger was to make them work even harder. Another cause of the famine was Mao's war on nature. The infamous "Four Pests Campaign," which targeted sparrows, is a striking example of how tampering with the ecosystem can lead to disastrous consequences. In 1958, Mao declared war on sparrows and pests, mobilizing the entire population to destroy their nests. The sparrow population in China plummeted to near extinction. Astonishingly, people were encouraged and rewarded for killing sparrows.
When officials in China realized that sparrows actually ate the pests, it was too late, and the country was already struggling with a severe famine. The death toll from the famine reached approximately 38 million. This event is scarcely mentioned in China's official history.
From 1966 to 1976, Mao unleashed another catastrophe upon China known as the Cultural Revolution. Mao sought to build a new nation through the Cultural Revolution by waging war against tradition, knowledge, and customs. Intellectuals and the educated were sent to labor camps. Buddhist monks were imprisoned, Buddha statues were burnt, Muslims were forced to consume pork, schools were shut down, and those caught reading foreign books were jailed. Everyone became an informer. Through the guardians of the revolution, millions of people, according to some sources, lost their lives in the turmoil. This period, referred to as a ten-year turmoil, is not even mentioned in textbooks. Mao, in his pursuit of a new society under the light of the Cultural Revolution, began to dismantle anything related to the past—culture, ideas, habits, and traditions. According to him, he was eliminating the common enemies of innovative thoughts and communism. Teachers were killed by their own students, and the bodies of the educated were left on the streets, while old books were burned in the open. The goal was to create a new society under the banner of the Cultural Revolution.
In May 1966, Mao's ego reached its peak. Clothing with his portrait became a prominent feature. His "Little Red Book" was recited line by line. Between 1964 and 1976, an estimated 5 to 6.5 billion copies of the book were printed, making it the most widely read book of the 20th century. It became mandatory, especially during the Cultural Revolution.
The visit of the American table tennis national team to China in 1971 was perhaps one of the most significant events in world politics. These players became the first Americans to visit China since its communist revolution. The architect behind this was Mao, who allowed their visit. In the midst of the heated days of the Cold War, with the Korea and Vietnam wars in close proximity, relations between the two nations, which were at loggerheads, suddenly blossomed through a spectacular ping pong match. The special relationship that continues to this day was established, and the foundations of this were laid. Through this thaw, American President Nixon surprised the world by visiting Beijing in 1972. To some, this event was as incredible as mankind setting foot on the moon. Mao, due to tensions with the Soviet Union (because the two countries advocated different forms of communism), pragmatically pulled a country like America to his side, showing how pragmatic he could be.
Mao, who dipped China into the sauce of communism, laid the seeds for the relentless development drive of today's semi-fascist realm of capitalist China. Even today, industries are rife with forced labor. Despite more than 30 years passing, Mao's legacy continues to live on in the changing face of China. While the country serves as a linchpin for the capitalist world with its massive production capacity, the legend of Mao still persists. His wife, who was later put on trial, passed away. Mao himself died at the age of 82 in 1976. Perhaps he summarized his own fate best in a speech in 1975: "Even if I died a hundred times, it would not be enough to repay the soil with fertilizers."
Following Mao's death, his influence in politics gradually waned. Today, while he is officially respected as a leader in China, his name is not frequently invoked by the Chinese government.
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