Classicide in Communist China

Since the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, China has known only one form of government: the authoritarian communism of Mao Zedong. Although China has undergone 30 years of major social and economic transitions, from a political standpoint, the fundamental system of dictatorship established by Mao Zedong has not changed. Why? Because China's leaders are deeply afraid of falling from power and allowing real freedom, democracy, and human rights to flourish.

The Party of Hu Jintao and Wen Jiabao is the party of Mao Zedong. We cannot just forget the crimes committed against humanity over the course of its 60-year history. The world rightfully remembers the tragedy of the Holocaust where around 20 million were killed. But many in the West do not realize that genocide has taken place on an even greater scale in the People's Republic of China. Under Mao's reign, it is estimated that 65 million people died of unnatural causes- many of whom were killed because of their class background.

"Genocide," as defined by the United Nations, "involves acts committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group." The methods of genocide are not limited to killing, but also include mental harm and restrictions on people's rights and freedoms. The brutal and widespread "classicide" committed by the Chinese government was indeed genocide.

What is classicide? In order to consolidate his power, Mao Zedong implemented a nation-wide ideology to undermine those who previously held power. According to the Chinese Communist Party's revolutionary theory, society is composed of different classes of people who can be divided into two major groups: the exploiting class and the exploited. The Communist Party sought to exterminate the "exploiting classes," so it launched a political campaign to determine the political and social status of individuals. According to each individual's possession of land, capital, property, and income (as well as the situation of their family members), everyone in the country was designated as a member of the landlord class, the rich peasant class, the middle peasant class, or the poor worker and peasant classes.

The poor classes were praised for their humble way of life and work ethic, and so they willingly supported the Communist Party. Meanwhile, the landowners, the...