Boluan Fanzheng

History of the People's Republic of China
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1976–1989
Transition and Deng era Arrest of the Gang of Four Boluan Fanzheng 1978 Truth Criterion Controversy Message to Compatriots in Taiwan [zh] Reforms and Opening-up Four Special Economic Zones Establishment of China-US Relations (Three Communiques) Four Modernizations Sino-Vietnamese War Beijing Spring Strike Hard Anti-crime Campaign Sino-British Joint Declaration Campaign against spiritual pollution Bourgeois liberalization Anti-bourgeois liberalization 863 Program 1986 Chinese student demonstrations Sino-Portuguese Joint Declaration Revolutions of 1989 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre
1989–2002
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Boluan Fanzheng (simplified Chinese: 拨乱反正; traditional Chinese: 撥亂反正; lit. 'Eliminating chaos and returning to normal'; trans. "Setting Things Right") refers to a period of significant sociopolitical reforms starting with the accession of Deng Xiaoping to the paramount leadership in China, replacing Hua Guofeng, who had been appointed as Mao Zedong's successor before Mao's death in 1976. During this period, a far-reaching program of reforms was undertaken by Deng and his allies to "correct the mistakes of the Cultural Revolution", and restore order in the country.^[1][2] The start of the Boluan Fanzheng period is regarded as an inflection point in Chinese history, with its cultural adjustments later proven to be the bedrock upon which the parallel economic reform and opening up could take place.^[3][4] As such, aspects of market capitalism were successfully introduced to the Chinese economy, giving rise to a period of growth often characterized as one of the most impressive economic achievements in human history.^[5][6][7]

Deng, who had been in and out of favor during the Cultural Revolution, first spoke publicly of the ideas of Boluan Fanzheng in September 1977, roughly a year after Mao's death and the subsequent arrest of the Gang of Four.^[8][9] With the help of allies such as Hu Yaobang, who later became the party's General Secretary, Deng was able to launch his reforms after the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee in December 1978, where he had ascended to the paramount leadership role.^[10][11][12] The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Chinese government gradually dismantled the many distinctly Maoist policies associated with the Cultural Revolution, and rehabilitated millions of people who had been targeted during its decade of turmoil.^[13][10] Boluan Fanzheng lasted until early the 1980s, after which the primary focus of CCP and the Chinese government shifted from "class struggle" to further modernization and "economic construction".^[14][15] The subsequent speed of China's transformation in this period from one of the poorest countries to one of the world's largest economies is unmatched in history.^[16]: 11

However, the Boluan Fanzheng period also saw many controversies, such as the handling of the legacies of Mao and the Cultural Revolution—namely the light treatment of figures who had been involved in the period's atrocities, as well as the enshrinement of the "Four Cardinal Principles" in the country's constitution, which upheld one-party rule in China.^[17][18] The CCP has not declassified many documents related to the Cultural Revolution, and has contributed to the chilling effect dissuading its academic study and public discussion within Chinese society.^[19][20] Recently, there have been concerns about a potential erosion of the era's reforms and a more autocratic rule under Xi Jinping, who became General Secretary in 2012.^{[21][22][23][24]}