of the Muslims left the latter with a deep and justified distrust of the
former. In order to unite the Muslims despite the historical background
of racial hatred between the majority group of Han and the minority
group of Muslims, Mao allowed and encouraged the establishment
of ‘‘Mohammedan communities’’ by the Muslims, which went on to
become ‘‘village Soviets’’ (Snow, 1944 : 349–355).
Mao’s charisma reached the level of a cult during the Cultural
Revolution when literally every hand in the nation possessed a red
book of Chairman Mao’s quotations and a figurine of Mao, sacred
objects never to be blasphemed. Mao’s omnipresence in the nation
(certainly including his portrait on the Tian-an-men rostrum) further
enhanced his charisma, indeed even transforming the man into a deity.
Mao’s stature in history was clinched by his revolutionary victories,
his founding of the PRC and the liberation of the nation from centur-
ies of various types of oppression. Even those post-1949 disasters of
Mao could not eclipse this man’s grandeur. Mao’s leadership philoso-
phy and practice, aided by his poetic charisma, lie at the root of his
greatness.
Deng Xiaoping’s leadership theory and practice
A biography of Deng Xiaoping (1904–1997)
Deng Xiaoping was a prominent leader of the CCP, and after 1978
the dominant figure in Chinese politics. Born in Guang-an county of
Sichuan province in south-western China, he studied in France on a
‘‘work-study’’ program from 1920 to 1925. He joined the Communist
party during this time. In 1926, he studied in Moscow for a short time
and went back to China to join the Chinese revolution the following
year. He became associated with Mao Zedong at this time. In 1934–
1935, he participated in the renowned Long March. He was elected a
member of the CCP’s Central Committee, became the first secretary of
the East China section, then of the South-west China section, and then
of the CCP Central Committee from 1949. After 1952, he successively
served as the vice-premier of the Government Administration Council,
secretary-general of the Central Committee, vice-premier of the State
Council, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee
in 1955, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau,
and secretary-general of the CCP Central Committee in 1956. He was
220 Xin-an Lu and Jie Lu