podcast

Guest: Simone van Nieuwenhuizen, Project and Research Officer, Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI), University of Technology Sydney; co-author, China and the New Maoists (Zed, 2016)

Host: Elena Collinson, Senior Project and Research Officer, Australia-China Relations Institute (ACRI), University of Technology Sydney

Who are China’s new Maoists and what influence do they have in contemporary China? How does the Chinese Communist Party attempt to control and manipulate the historical narrative of Mao? Why have China’s new Maoists expressed admiration for US President Donald Trump?

Simone van Nieuwenhuizen joins Elena Collinson to discuss the rise of China’s new Maoists and the complex relationship China has with its founding father.

Neo-Maoists potentially pose a greater threat to the stability of the Chinese Communist Party than neoliberal dissidents. This is due to the fact that, despite Maoism’s violently revolutionary core, the Party cannot completely repudiate neo-Maoists’ ideology; Mao and Mao Zedong Thought continue to be enshrined in China’s Constitution, and China’s revolutionary history is highlighted in official ‘red tourism’ and ‘patriotic education’ campaigns.

The internet has played a powerful role in promoting the neo-Maoist movement in China. Several high-profile incidents that began online have placed the Chinese Government, state media and justice system under pressure to act in favour of neo-Maoists. China’s neo-Maoists expressed support for Donald Trump during his election campaign due to his pledge to empower the ‘oppressed working class’ and improve American society, but since his inauguration have completely reversed this stance.

Theme music by Sam J Mitchell.