Du Runsheng's Autobiography: A Record of Major Policy Decisions on China's Rural System Reform

Author: Du Runsheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-08-01
Features: Du Runsheng is one of the most senior experts on rural issues within the Party. From the 1950s to the 1960s, he served as the Secretary-General of the Central Rural Work Department. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, he held the position of Deputy Director of the National Rural Commission. After the early 1980s, he became the Director of the Central Rural Policy Research Office, a member of the Central Advisory Commission of the Communist Party of China, and has long been involved in the decision-making process regarding rural issues in China since the founding of the nation. He has always believed that "the biggest problem in China is the rural issue, and the biggest problem for farmers is the land issue." He repeatedly advised the central leadership, advocating for the implementation of the household responsibility system (contracting production to households) in rural areas. From 1982 to 1986, he participated in drafting the famous "Five Central No. 1 Documents" for five consecutive years, which played a significant role in promoting and consolidating the household responsibility system in rural China. He is recognized as one of the core figures in the formulation of China's rural reform policies in the 1980s, with profound influence. This book primarily records the land reform in the early years of the founding of the nation and the rural changes after the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee, as well as the author's long-term engagement in and leadership of China's rural system reforms, along with his reflections. It is based on the author's personal experiences, observations, and insights. It holds high historical value and practical reference significance for understanding the decision-making process of the Party's rural policies and the high-level debates surrounding them.