Deng Xiaoping

Deng Xiaoping (;, ; also romanised as '''Teng Hsiao-p'ing; born Xiansheng''' (). }} 22 August 190419 February 1997) was a Chinese revolutionary and statesman who served as the paramount leader of the People's Republic of China from 1978 to 1989. After the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, Deng rose to power and led China through a period of Reform and Opening Up that transformed China's economy into a socialist market economy. He is widely regarded as the "Architect of Modern China" for his contributions to socialism with Chinese characteristics and Deng Xiaoping Theory.

Deng was born in Sichuan during the final years of the Qing dynasty; he first became interested in Marxism-Leninism in the 1920s while studying abroad in France. In 1924, he joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), traveled to Moscow to continue his studies, and subsequently returned to China, where he became a political commissar in the Red Army. Deng was a key member of CCP leadership during the Chinese Civil War, exemplified by the part he played in the Communists' survival during the Long March. He later helped to lead the People's Liberation Army (PLA) to victory in the civil war, including participating in the PLA's capture of Nanjing.

After the proclamation of the PRC in October 1949, Deng held several key regional roles, eventually rising to a central position in the State Council during the 1950s. As Vice Premier of China and Secretary-General of the Chinese Communist Party under Mao Zedong, Deng presided over economic reconstruction efforts. Deng played a significant role in the Anti-Rightist Campaign, which persecuted intellectuals and critics of the CCP. The campaign led to the persecution of an estimated 550,000 people, including writers and political activists, and is viewed as a key event in solidifying his support for Mao's hardline policies at the time. He fell out of favor during the Cultural Revolution due to his preference for pragmatic, market-oriented policies. He was purged twice by Mao, but after Mao's death, Deng emerged as the paramount leader by outmaneuvering his rivals.

Upon coming to power, Deng began a massive overhaul of China's infrastructure and political system. Due to the institutional disorder and political turmoil from the Mao era (1949-1976), he and his allies launched the ''Boluan Fanzheng'' program which sought to restore order by rehabilitating veteran CCP leadership as well as millions of people who were persecuted during the Cultural Revolution. He also initiated a reform and opening up program that introduced elements of market capitalism to the Chinese economy by designating special economic zones throughout the country. In August 1980, Deng embarked on a series of political reforms, setting constitutional term limits for state officials and other systematic revisions, which were incorporated in the country's fourth constitution. Deng later championed a one-child policy to deal with China's perceived overpopulation crisis, helped establish China's nine-year compulsory education, and oversaw the launch of the 863 Program to promote science and technology. The reforms carried out by Deng and his allies gradually led China away from a command economy and Maoist dogma, opened it up to foreign investments and technology, and introduced its vast labor force to the global market—thereby transforming China into one of the world's fastest-growing economies.

During the course of his leadership, Deng was named the ''Time'' Person of the Year for 1978 and 1985. Despite his contributions to China's modernization, Deng's legacy is also marked by controversy. He ordered the military crackdown on the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, which ended his political reforms and remains a subject of global criticism. The one-child policy introduced in Deng's era also drew criticism. Nonetheless, his policies laid the foundation for China's emergence as a major global power. Provided by Wikipedia