In 1958 the Chinese communist party launched the Great Leap Forward campaign under the new "General Line for Socialist Construction." Mao Zedong(leader of China) promised the People's Republic that within fifteen years China would exceed Great Britain in the production of major products. Although evidence is vague, Mao's decision to introduce the Great Leap Forward was based in part on his concern about the Soviet policy of economic, financial, and technical assistance to China. The …showed first 75 words of 1480 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1480 total…hundreds of thousands to a few million. The state of Chinese demographics at the time, combined with the horror of the PRC to allow serious research into the period, means that the real figures are unlikely ever to be known. China was forced to start from scratch, losing all information that could have helped the world in enormous ways. The world views this time in history as one of the most devastating tragedies ever Committed.