Understanding Mao Tse-Tung : The person who change China

Sh. Ajit *

In the late 19th century China was a shell of its once glorious part, led by the decrepit Qing Dynasty. Mao Tse Tung was born on Dec 26, 1893 in the farming community of Shaoshan, in the province of Hunan, China to a peasant family that had tilled their 3 acres of land for several generations. The life was difficult for many Chinese citizens at that times. But Mao’s family was better off the most.

The great leader of the Chinese Revolution possesses many of the qualities of leadership that characterized Marx, Engles, Lenin and Stalin. He is a man of resolution, initative and boundless energy. He is a brilliant theoretician and exceptional organizer and a very powerful leader of the masses in open struggle. And also he was the most influential writer and revolutionary warfare.

He adapted what Sun Tzu, Clausewitz and other theorists had written about guerrilla war to the 20th century. His writings on guerrilla war have been the cornerstone of the most modern writing on the subject as well they should since his strategy defeated Chiang Kai-Shek and control of the largest nation in population in the world.

Mao’s believed like Sun-Tze, that guerrilla war was neither independent nor decisive. It was one phase of the revolution. The guerrilla served the same function as the agent in Sun-Tzu’s theory, they weaken and demoralize the incumbent army until such time as a revolutionary army can deliver a decisive victory.

Mao saw revolution as a continuum where guerrilla war gave way to conventional battle as the inevitable tide turned to the revolutionary cause. He also considered guerrillas to be an excellent auxiliary force and cited as an example how the Russian partisans magnified the effectiveness of conventional forces during Nepoleon’s withdrawal from Russia.

Mao believed that without a political goal, revolutions must fail because the guerrilla lives off the masses and depends on them for support. He further stated that the rebels primary operating area must be the imperialist army’s rear area. The members of a revolution need to be volunteers and be politically indoctrinate improved revolutionary unity and created better role models for delivering his political massage to the messes.

He emphasis on the political side of revolution sprany from the belief that without political conviction, solders fight without determination and can be shaken in their faith. On the positive side, politically indoctrinated guerrilla leaders cemented the relationship between the people and the guerrilla army.

Mao’s political activities were aimed at three major objectives. Firstly he sought spiritual unification of the officers and the men. Secondly, he sought spiritual unification of the army and the people. And lastly, he sought destruction of the spiritual unity of the enemy. He also believed that externally imposed discipline made officers and their men indifferent to each other. This points out Mao’s belief in the strong dependence of revolutionary armies on cohesion, both internally and between the army and the people.

Mao fundamental axiom of combat was conserve own strategy, destroy the enemies. To implement this strategy, he laid out six (6) “essential requirements” for his commanders. Retain the initiative by using tactical attacks within a strategic defence and tactical speed in a strategically protracted war. Complement regular army operations with guerrilla tactics. Establish and secure sanctuaries or base camp.

Understand the relationship between attack and defence. Develop tactical mobility. And establish correct command relationships. His operational strategy called for the guerrilla commander to retain the decision to attack, never allowing the initiative to pass to the incumbent army. Deny the enemy a secure base of operations by converting his rear area into a second front.

And most important, attack only at points of relative weakness force to win decisively before reinforcements arrive. Mao expression for this concept was “uproar in the east, strike in the west.” By doing these things well, Mao believed he could force the unlawful government into a spiral of increasing severity and repression, further alienating it from the peoples. Mao taught that negotiation was for compromise but to buy time and to wear out the unlawful government.

He also taught that intelligence was the cornerstone of successful guerrilla was because it allowed the commander to start only battles he knew he could win. He also stressed “the unity of opposite”, that there was an advantage in every disadvantage and that the commander should exploit these advantages.

Mao - The Revolutionary

“ The Aim was to free from feudal Lord, to win , not freedom speech , voting or assembly, but freedom to survive”.

Mao Zedong commonly known as chairman Mao a chines revolutionary who became the founding father of the People’s Republic of China. He was born on December 26,1893 in Shoshana village , Hunan province China. He was the last of the Vanishing breed of leaders who strode the world like a colossus.

A humble present to the unquestioned leadership of 800 million emancipated Chinese, from an obscure tactician to one of the greatest theoreticians from Marxism -Leninism from the struggle of National Leberation of the struggle for permanent revolution ,such as the theme of Mao’s life that has inspired legends. His achievements have always verged on the epic scale.

He united a long divided empire, transformed the vast bulk of the wretched peasantry into powerful Nation of the world. Chinese need and aspirations laid the foundation of a modernized economy and restored China self respect . Mao’s formed a society of idealistic students to work for the motherland . Though they had no clear idea of how they should work towards their readings finally into communist.

Mao’s was one of the small group who formed the chines communist party in 1921. He started organisation peasent revolution. He expressed later on,the first part of the struggle was peasant revolt. “The aim is to free the former feudal Lord, to win,not freedom speech, voting or assembly, but the freedom to survive”.

Mao’s peasant forces played an important role in support of Chiang kai-shek in his campaigns against chines war Lord in 1926. But the following year when Chiang kai-shek turned against the communist, the civil war started. The betrayal of Chiang kai-shek was compounded by the dogmatic line of the Russian inspired leadership of the Chinese Communist party .

To them, Mao line in the specific situation of China the peasant’s are the base of the revolution contradicted Russian emphasis on workers as the base and it was equivalent in seriousness to heresy. The conflict was resolved in Mao’s favour in 1935 conference when he was return to power as the undisputed leader. He has never looked back since there different from other nationalist and communist leaders of his time.

Mao’s never interpreted the seizure of power as the end of revolution. Mao’s revolution was always the relentless struggle to create new thoughts , customs, and culture. Mao’s is able to blaze new trails for the permanent revolution if China is a mark of true greatness.

To the suffered, exploited and oppressed masses of the underdeveloped south East Asia and to the people of the surviving ramparts if colonialism white or black the revolutionary massage of Mao’s has an appeal and race, line and state boundaries. To the overwhelmingly peasant society of southeast Asia, the ultimate vindication of Mao’s line against orthodoxy of Stalin, that peasants are the base of revolution was in itself a generation event.