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Twice Debates about Chinese Trade Union in the 1950s and the Establishment of the Party-State System

Youn Mi Jang

서강대학교 동아연구소

Published: January 2015 · Vol. 68, No. 0 · pp. 103-141

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33334/sieas.2015.34.1.103

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Abstract

This paper analyzed how working people in socialist system was formed in the process of establishment of relationship between CCP(Chinese Communist Party) and trade union, and how the Party-State system had been built in that process through an overview of twice debates about Chinese trade union in the 1950s. In the early periods of nation-building, ACFTU(All-China Federation of Trade Unions) organized and mobilized workers for production, raised the awareness and consciousness of the workers themselves as a master of socialist factory, as well as, struggled to improve the system for implementing the principles of democratic self-management within the factory. After twice debates about trade union, however, the ‘intermediary’ role of the trade union connected with the Party does not proceed to the ``organization`` for workers themselves. After the first debate, the political leadership of the Party has been expanded to lead administrative ``work`` area in the crisis of nation-building and war, and after the second debate, the work leadership of the Party has extended to lead ``organization`` area in the mid-1950s. The trade union was organizationally dependent on the Party within the party leadership frame, thereby Chinese leadership could be forming a strong Party-State system blocking the possibility of worker’s voluntary organization or political empowerment. However, the Party-State system has the immanent dual principles, which is “"party to respond to the needs of the people and the people that depend on the party leadership", so the mass movement was constantly invoked in political stage and the independent labour movement was also emerged repeatedly in the Chinese contemporary history.
Keywords: 중국 공산당당국체제사회주의 노동인민중화전국총공회노조체제