Article 1 of the Common Program

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In the wake of China's revolutionary upheaval in 1949, the landscape of social classes underwent a profound transformation, as outlined in the Common Program. This blueprint delineated the constituents of the people's democratic dictatorship, comprising industrial laborers, farmers, the small bourgeoisie, and the national bourgeoisie, collectively constituting 'the people.' Central to this framework were the farmers and laborers, who formed the backbone, representing approximately 90% of the populace. The success of socialist aspirations hinged on fostering robust cooperation between these two groups during the transitional phase. The composition of this group is unclear. Following 1949, the petty bourgeoisie emerged as a widely acknowledged class category nationwide, identifiable by both officials and ordinary citizens in nearly every context. The petty bourgeois were commonly perceived to harbor political and moral deficiencies detrimental to the broader goals of nation-building and socialist endeavors. Individuals ranging from white-collar workers, government officials, and students to shopkeepers, small-scale factory owners, and small farmers, as well as soldiers, laborers, and housewives, either self-identified or were identified by others, often on a daily basis, as belonging to the petty bourgeoisie. See also Article 7. The petty bourgeoisie is the group between the exploited class and the exploiting class. They are described as possessing extreme individualism and self-interest.
Stalin advises Mao Zedong to: "… not pushing away national bourgeoisie but drawing them to cooperation as a force capable of helping in the struggle against the imperialists. Therefore [we] advise to encourage the trading activities of the national bourgeoisie both inside of China and on the outside, let's say trade with Hong Kong and with other foreign capitalists." The small bourgeoisie and the national bourgeoisie are a part of ‘the people’ but at the same time exploiters of ‘the people’. Rong Yiren is one of the many national bourgeoisie persons who benefits of these moderate and lenient politics. He welcomes the new regime and he does not flee to Hong Kong or Taiwan like other merchants and factory owners. The civil war has almost ruined his businesses. He is able to rescue his factories because the new rulers bring economic and political stability in Shanghai and the rest of the country. See also Article 35

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In June 1950, at the 3rd Plenum of the Party Congress, Mao Zedong stated: We should unite the petty bourgeoisie and the national bourgeoisie under the leadership of the working class, grounded in the worker-peasant alliance. Although the national bourgeoisie will ultimately cease to exist, at this stage, we must bring them into our fold rather than push them away. We should engage in both struggle and unity with them. As early as 1940, in his essay "On New Democracy," Mao Zedong warned that the transition to a socialist state would be a lengthy process. He emphasized that the present moment was not yet right for socialism, as the immediate revolutionary task in China was to combat imperialism and feudalism. According to Mao, socialism could only come after this task was achieved. He argued that the Chinese revolution must proceed in two stages: first, New Democracy, and then socialism. Moreover, the New Democratic stage would require considerable time and could not be completed rapidly. Whenever the national bourgeoisie misbehaves, they can be expelled and they will no longer belong to the people's democratic dictatorship.
"For the leadership, however, members of the petty bourgeoisie were identical at the core, that is, each one was a threat to the transition to socialism." This thread was dealt with during the Sanfan and Wufan campaigns in 1951 and 1952. See Article 18

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There is also a group who do not belong to ‘the people’ and are not a part of the people's democratic dictatorship. They have no civil rights and are looked upon as the exploiters of the mass. Landowners, GMD members, and bureaucratic capitalist form this group. Bureaucratic capitalists are GMD leaders who act as owners of state companies. They have mostly confiscated these possessions after the Japanese lost the war. In the 1930’s and 40’s, the Japanese had confiscated these firms. The bureaucratic capitalists owned about two-thirds of all Chinese corporations and about 750.000 employees work in these enterprises. The main capitalists were 4 families:

The Soong, The Kung family , the brothers Chen and the family of Jiang Jieshi .
In "On People's Democratic Dictatorship," Mao Zedong wrote that the CCP’s goal is to eliminate “enemies of the people” and explained that the state apparatus, including the army, the police, and the courts, is an instrument by which one class oppresses another. It is an instrument for the oppression of antagonistic classes; it is violence, not 'benevolence.'" He emphasized that there is no alternative for China, as it cannot be compared to Western states. While bourgeois republics exist abroad, China, under imperialist oppression, cannot establish a bourgeois republic. A people's republic led by the working class is the only viable path, as all other options have failed. Mao specifically excluded “enemies of the people” from the category of “the people.” While such individuals remain citizens, they have only the duties of citizenship, not its rights. Mao outlined their limited leeway as for the members of the reactionary classes and individual reactionaries, so long as they do not rebel, sabotage, or cause trouble after their political power has been overthrown, they will be provided with land and work to allow them to live and reform themselves through labor. If they refuse to work, the people's state will compel them to work. Propaganda and educational efforts will also target them, conducted with as much care and thoroughness as among captured army officers in the past. In summary the people's democratic dictatorship is a democracy for ‘the people’ and a dictatorship for the enemies of ‘the people’.
The national bourgeoisie’s intermediate status was always meant to be temporary, and in June 1952, Mao Zedong decided to end this designation. With the elimination of the landlord and bureaucratic-capitalist classes, the primary contradiction in China had shifted to that between the working class and the national bourgeoisie; thus, the national bourgeoisie could no longer be regarded as an intermediate class. This statement is in contradiction with the time path Mao Zedong defined in 1940 (see above)
A special group should be mentioned, they were so called petty thieves, gamblers, whores, pimps, opium addicts, and vagrants. They were subjected to ‘non-criminal’ reform measures during some period. In Shanghai more than five thousand beggars and pickpockets were taken to custody centres in nursery schools and training units in December 1949. Many were selected for re-education, but over three thousand were sent to prisons or labour camps.

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Amidst the ongoing socio-economic reforms, dissent emerged in the form of labor disputes and protests. The regime's response alternated between concessions and crackdowns, highlighting the delicate balance between maintaining control and addressing grievances. Although the CCP viewed itself as the vanguard of the working class, this did not mean that the working class automatically followed the party's lead. Between May 1949 and May 1950, more than 9,000 labor disputes occurred in Shanghai, primarily over wages and unemployment. The new regime swiftly dismantled all independent labor organizations, and by November 1949, temporary measures were implemented to manage conflicts. On January 26, 1951, the government announced a labor assurance policy. It provided the payment of medical expenses, disability pensions, funeral costs, retirement pensions, financial support for the families of workers killed in the workplace, and maternity leave.
Protest still occurred. See Article 32.

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Chapter 1 of Common Program

• Road to Common Program
• Common Program
• Bibliography
• Documents