Three and Five Antis Campaigns
In the early years after the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) launched two political campaigns, with the purpose of reinforcing party control over rural and urban China. Both campaigns targeted mainly urban dwellers and people working in the modern business sector.
First, the CCP initiated the Three Antis Campaign against corruption, waste, and bureaucratism. The campaign targeted cadres in government and industry, especially those who had become acquainted with China's capitalists. Second, the party launched the Five Antis Campaign against bribery, tax evasion, theft of state assets (that is, state property and economic information), cheating on government contracts, and stealing capital. This campaign targeted the Chinese capitalists themselves. Some of the blacklisted capitalists were left to function as government employees; many were simply eliminated and disappeared from the business circle.
The Five Antis Campaign also had a hidden agenda. It seized factories and capital from the blacklisted capitalists and placed them under government control. Through these efforts, the CCP expanded its influence over China's modern economic sectors. At the same time, the campaign helped the party to identify potential supporters who could be recruited into the CCP, thereby consolidating the party's grip over every aspect of Chinese society. From 1947 to 1953, the membership of the CCP increased from 2.7 million to 6.1 million.
Further Reading
Goldman, Merle. (1981) China's Intellectuals: Advise and Dissent. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
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