79-587: Lei Feng (18 December 1940 – 15 August 1962) was a soldier in the People's Liberation Army who was the object of several major campaigns in China . The most well-known of these campaigns in 1963 promoted the slogan "Follow the examples of Comrade Lei Feng." Lei was portrayed as a model citizen, and the masses were encouraged to emulate his selflessness, modesty, and devotion to Mao Zedong . After Mao's death , state media continued to promote Lei Feng as
158-488: A $ 3.5-million renovation to the Robertson Davies Library, St. Catherine's Chapel and handicap access to the college. Other achievements include increasing its endowment to approximately $ 12,000,000 ($ 7,577,184 in the college's 2005 tax return and $ 4,000,000 held for student bursaries at the U of T's School of Graduate Studies). Other achievements include tripling the number of senior fellows and increasing
237-509: A cult of Mao. When Lei Feng died in the line of duty, he was only 22, but his short life gives concentrated expression to the noble ideals of a new people, nurtured with the communist spirit, and also to the noble moral integrity and values of the Chinese people in the new period. These are firm faith in communist ideals, political warmheartedness for the party and the socialist cause, the revolutionary will to work arduously for self-improvement,
316-597: A humanitarian and medical training practice conducted in Gabon. For the past 10 to 20 years, the PLA has acquired some advanced weapons systems from Russia, including Sovremenny class destroyers , Sukhoi Su-27 and Sukhoi Su-30 aircraft, and Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines. It has also started to produce several new classes of destroyers and frigates including the Type 052D class guided-missile destroyer. In addition,
395-474: A large number of elementary school students have vague knowledge of Lei Feng's life, and that 32 percent of the surveyed have read Lei's diary. 5 March has become the official "Learn from Lei Feng Day" ( Chinese : 学 雷 锋 日 ; pinyin : Xué Léi Fēng Rì ). This day involves various community and school events where people go to clean up parks, schools, and other community locations. Local news on that day usually has footage from these events. Lei Feng
474-737: A major threat, and the new threats to China are seen to be a declaration of independence by Taiwan , possibly with assistance from the United States, or a confrontation over the Spratly Islands . In 1985, under the leadership of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party and the CMC, the PLA changed from being constantly prepared to "hit early, strike hard and to fight a nuclear war" to developing
553-793: A member of the CMC. Previously, the PLA was governed by four general departments; the General Political, the General Logistics, the General Armament, and the General Staff Departments. These were abolished in 2016 under the military reforms undertaken by Xi Jinping, replaced with 15 new functional departments directly reporting to the CMC: Included among the 15 departments are three commissions. The CMC Discipline Inspection Commission
632-406: A model of earnestness and service, and his image still appears in popular forms such as on T-shirts and memorabilia. The biographic details of Lei Feng's life, and especially his diary, supposedly discovered after his death, are generally believed to be propaganda creations; even the historicity of Lei Feng himself is sometimes questioned. The continuing use of Lei in government propaganda has become
711-525: A reduced role in political affairs and limited budgets; the military was downsized to free resources for economic development . The lack of oversight, ineffective self-regulation, and Jiang Zemin 's and Hu Jintao 's lack of close personal ties to the PLA, led to systemic corruption that persisted through the late-2010s. Jiang's attempt to divest the PLA of its commercial interests was only partly successful as many were still run by close associates of PLA officers. Corruption lowered readiness and proficiency,
790-454: A result of its egalitarian organization, the early PLA overturned strict traditional hierarchies that governed the lives of peasants. As sociologist Alessandro Russo summarizes, the peasant composition of the PLA hierarchy was a radical break with Chinese societal norms and "overturned the strict traditional hierarchies in unprecedented forms of egalitarianism[.]" In the PRC's early years, the PLA
869-418: A retraction in 2015. Lei Feng's story continues to be referenced in popular culture. A popular song by Jilin singer Xue Cun (雪村) is called "All Northeasterners are Living Lei Fengs" (Chinese: 东北人都是活雷锋 ; pinyin: Dōngběi Rén Dōu Shì Huó Léifēng ). A 1995 release, originally notable only for its use of Northeastern Mandarin , it shot to nationwide fame when it was combined with kitsch animations on
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#1732783619799948-725: A rotational basis to combat the Ebola virus outbreak in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau. As of 2023, this was the PLA's largest medical assistance mission in another country. China re-organized its military from 2015 to 2016 . In 2015, the PLA formed new units including the PLA Ground Force, the PLA Rocket Force and the PLA Strategic Support Force. In 2016, the CMC replaced
1027-408: A single body. The only difference in membership between the two occurs for a few months every five years, during the period between a Party National Congress , when Party CMC membership changes, and the next ensuing National People's Congress, when the state CMC changes. The CMC is composed of a chairman , vice chairpersons and regular members. The chairman of the CMC is the commander-in-chief of
1106-470: A source of cynicism and even derision amongst segments of the Chinese population. Nevertheless, Lei's function as a propaganda icon has survived decades of political change in China. The current biography of Lei Feng as given in China's state media says that he was born in Wangcheng (near the town of Leifeng , Changsha , Hunan, named in his honour). According to CNTV , Lei lost all of his family before
1185-658: Is charged with rooting out corruption. The CCP maintains absolute control over the PLA. It requires the PLA to undergo political education, instilling CCP ideology in its members. Additionally, China maintains a political commissar system. Regiment-level and higher units maintain CCP committees and political commissars ( Chinese : 政治委员 or 政委 ). Additionally, battalion-level and company-level units respectively maintain political directors and political instructors. The political workers are officially equal to commanders in status. The political workers are officially responsible for
1264-789: Is currently the executive chair of the National NewsMedia Council of Canada. As a journalist, Fraser received multiple national awards and chaired the Canadian Journalism Foundation until 2008. He initiated and taught a course on Canadian newspaper history at St. Michael's College , University of Toronto. During his teenage years, Fraser attended four high schools: Toronto's Upper Canada College , Oakwood Collegiate Institute, Lakefield College School in Lakefield, Ontario, and Jarvis Collegiate Institute. A classmate of his at Upper Canada College
1343-595: Is especially honoured in Changsha , Hunan , and in Fushun , Liaoning . The Lei Feng Memorial Hall (in his birthplace, now named for him, Leifeng ) and Lei Feng statue are located in Changsha . The local hospital carries his name. There is also a Lei Feng Memorial Hall, with a museum, in Fushun. Lei Feng's military unit was based in Fushun, where he died. His tomb is located on the memorial grounds. To commemorate Lei Feng,
1422-852: Is led by the Central Military Commission (CMC) with its chairman as commander-in-chief . The PLA can trace its origins during the Republican Era to the left-wing units of the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Kuomintang (KMT) when they broke away in 1927 in an uprising against the nationalist government as the Chinese Red Army , before being reintegrated into the NRA as units of New Fourth Army and Eighth Route Army during
1501-415: Is the PLA's interface with state and foreign entities and insulates the PLA from external influence. Today, the majority of military units around the country are assigned to one of five theatre commands by geographical location. The PLA is the world's largest military force (not including paramilitary or reserve forces ) and has the second largest defence budget in the world. China's military expenditure
1580-721: The Christian Science Monitor , The Guardian , The Daily Telegraph , Time , The New Republic , George , The Spectator , Paris Match and the Far Eastern Economic Review . Much later, two years after retiring from Massey College in June 2015, he returned to the world of journalism as the founding President and CEO of the National NewsMedia Council of Canada, formed from five former press councils across
1659-900: The Sherbrooke Daily Record and the St. John's Evening Telegram . In 1971, he was named music and dance critic for the Toronto Telegram and, after that newspaper's demise, was briefly in the same position at the Toronto Sun . He has also written regular columns for the Toronto Star and the National Post . From 1972 to 1987, he was a dance critic, theatre critic, China correspondent, Ottawa bureau chief, national columnist, national editor and London correspondent at The Globe and Mail . From 1987 to 1994, he
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#17327836197991738-621: The Great Leap Forward . Scholars generally believe that the diary was forged by Party officials under Lin's direction. The diary contains about 200,000 words describing selfless thoughts with enthusiastic comments on Mao and the inspiring nature of the Party. The campaign began at a time when the Chinese economy was recovering from the Great Leap Forward campaign. In 1964 the Lei Feng campaign shifted gradually from doing good deeds to
1817-871: The Long March . During the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1937 to 1945, the CCP's military forces were nominally integrated into the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China forming two main units, the Eighth Route Army and the New Fourth Army . During this time, these two military groups primarily employed guerrilla tactics , generally avoiding large-scale battles with the Japanese, at
1896-804: The Nanjing Military Region (1954–74), Yang Dezhi in the Jinan Military Region (1958–74), Chen Xilian in the Shenyang Military Region (1959–73), and Han Xianchu in the Fuzhou Military Region (1960–74). In the early days of the Cultural Revolution, the PLA abandoned the use of the military ranks that it had adopted in 1955. The establishment of a professional military force equipped with modern weapons and doctrine
1975-598: The National Revolutionary Army rebelled under the leadership of Zhu De , He Long , Ye Jianying , Zhou Enlai , and other leftist elements of the Kuomintang (KMT), after the Shanghai massacre in 1927. They were then known as the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army , or simply the Red Army. In 1934 and 1935, the Red Army survived several campaigns led against it by Chiang Kai-Shek 's KMT and engaged in
2054-519: The Second Sino-Japanese War . The two NRA communist units were reconstituted as the PLA in 1947. Since 1949, the PLA has used nine different military strategies, which it calls "strategic guidelines". The most important came in 1956, 1980, and 1993. Politically, the PLA and the paramilitary People's Armed Police (PAP) have the largest delegation in the National People's Congress (NPC); the joint delegation currently has 281 deputies—over 9% of
2133-825: The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan by supporting the Afghan mujahidin and ramping up their military presence near Afghanistan in Xinjiang. China acquired military equipment from the United States to defend itself from Soviet attacks. The PLA Ground Force trained and supported the Afghan Mujahideen during the Soviet-Afghan War, moving its training camps for the mujahideen from Pakistan into China itself. Hundreds of millions of dollars worth of anti-aircraft missiles, rocket launchers, and machine guns were given to
2212-672: The State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television with organizing group viewings. People%27s Liberation Army Arms [REDACTED] General Zhang Youxia The People's Liberation Army ( PLA ) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China . It consists of four services — Ground Force , Navy , Air Force , and Rocket Force —and four arms— Aerospace Force , Cyberspace Force , Information Support Force , and Joint Logistics Support Force . It
2291-446: The 2010s, interest in Lei Feng had devolved into kitsch , with his face still commonly appearing on t-shirts, stickers, and posters, but interest in his life story and diary minimal, as ticket sales to feature-length biographical films, Young Lei Feng, Lei Feng’s Smile and Lei Feng 1959, released on Learn from Lei Feng Day, failed to produce any takers at all in some cities. Reportedly, party cadres in rural areas have been charged by
2370-534: The Chinese armed forces . A goal of the RMA is to transform the PLA into a force capable of winning what it calls "local wars under high-tech conditions" rather than a massive, numbers-dominated ground-type war. Chinese military planners call for short decisive campaigns, limited in both their geographic scope and their political goals. In contrast to the past, more attention is given to reconnaissance , mobility, and deep reach. This new vision has shifted resources towards
2449-565: The Chinese leadership with a stark realization that the PLA was an oversized, almost-obsolete force. The USA's sending of two aircraft carrier groups to the vicinity of Taiwan during the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis prompted Jiang to order a ten-year PLA modernization program. The possibility of a militarized Japan has also been a continuous concern to the Chinese leadership since the late 1990s. In addition, China's military leadership has been reacting to and learning from
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2528-458: The Internet in 2001. In March 2006, a Chinese organization released an online game titled Learn from Lei Feng Online (学雷锋) in which the player has to do good deeds, fight spies, and collect parts of Mao Zedong's collection. If the player wins, he or she gets to meet Chairman Mao in the game. In the 21st century his image has been used to sell items including, in one case, condom packaging. By
2607-809: The Mujahideen by the Chinese. Chinese military advisors and army troops were also present with the Mujahideen during training. In 1981, the PLA conducted its largest military exercise in North China since the founding of the People's Republic. In the late 1980s, the central government had increasing expenditures and limited revenue. The central government encouraged its agencies and encouraged local governments to expand their services and pursue revenues. The PLA established businesses including hotels and restaurants. The PLA gained more autonomy and permission to engage in commercial activities in exchange for
2686-717: The Ninth Five Year Plan (1996–2000) the PLA was reduced by a further 500,000. The PLA had also been expected to be reduced by another 200,000 by 2005. The PLA has focused on increasing mechanization and informatization to be able to fight a high-intensity war. Former CMC chairman Jiang in 1990 called on the military to "meet political standards, be militarily competent, have a good working style, adhere strictly to discipline, and provide vigorous logistic support" ( Chinese : 政治合格、军事过硬、作风优良、纪律严明、保障有力 ; pinyin : zhèngzhì hégé, jūnshì guòyìng, zuòfēng yōuliáng, jìlǜ yánmíng, bǎozhàng yǒulì ). The 1991 Gulf War provided
2765-452: The PAP, the reserves, and the militia . The armed forces are controlled by the CCP under the doctrine of " the Party must always control the gun ".( Chinese : 党指挥枪 ; pinyin : Dǎng zhǐhuī qiāng ) The PLA and the PAP have the largest delegation in the National People's Congress (NPC), which are elected by servicemember election committees of top-level military subdivisions, including
2844-822: The PLA operates a base in Tajikistan and a listening station in Cuba. The Espacio Lejano Station in Argentina is operated by a unit of a PLA. The PLAN has also undertaken rotational deployments of its warships at the Ream Naval Base in Cambodia. The People's Republic of China has sent the PLA to various hotspots as part of China's role as a prominent member of the United Nations. Such units usually include engineers and logistical units and members of
2923-515: The PLA under the name of the People's Volunteer Army intervened in the Korean War as United Nations forces under General Douglas MacArthur approached the Yalu River . Under the weight of this offensive, Chinese forces drove MacArthur's forces out of North Korea and captured Seoul , but were subsequently pushed back south of Pyongyang north of the 38th Parallel . The war also catalyzed
3002-417: The PLA's primary objectives, although the armed forces' political loyalty to the CCP has remained a leading concern. Beginning in the 1980s, the PLA tried to transform itself from a land-based power centered on a vast ground force to a smaller, more mobile, high-tech one capable of mounting operations beyond its borders. The motivation for this was that a massive land invasion by Russia was no longer seen as
3081-531: The PLA's theater commands and service branches. At the 14th National People's Congress ; the joint delegation has 281 deputies—over 9% of the total—all of whom are CCP members. The PLA is governed by the Central Military Commission (CMC); under the arrangement of " one institution with two names ", there exists a state CMC and a Party CMC, although both commissions have identical personnel, organization and function, and effectively work as
3160-568: The PLA, with the post generally held by the paramount leader of China; since 1989, the post has generally been held together with the CCP general secretary . Unlike in other countries, the Ministry of National Defense and its Minister do not have command authority, largely acting as diplomatic liaisons of the CMC, insulating the PLA from external influence. However, the Minister has always been
3239-545: The PLA. In 2004, paramount leader Hu Jintao stated the mission of the PLA as: China describes its military posture as active defense , defined in a 2015 state white paper as "We will not attack unless we are attacked, but we will surely counterattack if attacked." The CCP founded its military wing on 1 August 1927 during the Nanchang uprising , beginning the Chinese Civil War . Communist elements of
Lei Feng - Misplaced Pages Continue
3318-908: The PLA. During the Sino-Soviet split , strained relations between China and the Soviet Union resulted in bloody border clashes and mutual backing of each other's adversaries. China and Afghanistan had neutral relations with each other during the King's rule. When the pro-Soviet Afghan Communists seized power in Afghanistan in 1978, relations between China and the Afghan communists quickly turned hostile. The Afghan pro-Soviet communists supported China's enemies in Vietnam and blamed China for supporting Afghan anticommunist militants. China responded to
3397-424: The PLAAF has designed its very own Chengdu J-10 fighter aircraft and a new stealth fighter, the Chengdu J-20 . The PLA launched the new Jin class nuclear submarines on 3 December 2004 capable of launching nuclear warheads that could strike targets across the Pacific Ocean and have three aircraft carriers, with the latest, the Fujian, launched in 2022. From 2014 to 2015, the PLA deployed 524 medical staff on
3476-444: The University of a Toronto (D.S.L). He has received medals from the Queen (Silver Jubilee, 1977; Golden Jubilee, 2002; Diamond Jubilee 2012) and also the 1967 Centennial medal. In journalism, he has won three National Newspaper Awards , seven National Magazine Awards , and "Editor of the Year" from the Canadian Magazine Editors Society. His book, The Chinese: Portrait of a People was a Book-of-the-Month Club main choice in 1981 and
3555-406: The armed forces. This is particularly visible in maritime territorial disputes where the navy is heavily involved in the planning, coordination and execution of operations by the PAP's China Coast Guard . The PLA's primary mission is the defense of the CCP and its interests. It is the guarantor of the party's survival and rule, and the party prioritizes maintaining control and the loyalty of
3634-467: The big anniversary it mounted its biggest parade yet and the first outside of Beijing, held in the Zhurihe Training Base in the Northern Theater Command (within the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region). In December 2023, Reuters reported a military leadership purge after high-ranking generals were ousted from the National People's Congress . Prior to 2017, over sixty generals were investigated and sacked. In addition to its Support Base in Djibouti ,
3713-564: The campaign presented a collection of twelve photographs of Lei Feng performing good deeds. The photographs were of exceptionally high professional quality, and depicted Lei—supposedly an obscure and unknown young man—engaging in mundane tasks. The lauded details of Lei Feng's life according to official documents led him to become a subject of derision and cynicism among segments of the Chinese populace. As John Fraser recalled, "Any Chinese I ever spoke to outside of official occasions always snorted about Lei Feng." A 2008 Xinhua survey noted that
3792-414: The city of Fushun named several landmarks in honor of him. There is a Lei Feng Road, a Lei Feng Elementary School, a Lei Feng Middle School and a Leifeng bank office. There is a common misconception that Lei Feng was well known in the US and honored at West Point . The myth has been traced to a 1981 April Fool's Day article that Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Zhurun mistook for a real article. Li issued
3871-487: The country. In that role, he forged a new media dispute resolution organization that now represents over 500 daily and weekly newspapers, digital news media platforms, magazines, and campus publications. In 2018, he was named the first Executive Chair of the NNC. In 1995, Fraser was elected the master of Massey College and chair of its governing corporation to a seven-year term and was subsequently re-elected to two further seven-year terms. Among his achievements at Massey were
3950-402: The establishment of the People's Republic, becoming an orphan. His father died when he was just five (killed by the invading Japanese Army), his elder brother, who was exploited as a child labourer, died a year later, and his younger brother passed soon afterward. Finally, his mother died by suicide after being "dishonored by a landlord." He became a member of the Communist youth corps when he
4029-510: The four traditional military departments with a number of new bodies. China replaced its system of seven military regions with newly established Theater Commands: Northern , Southern , Western , Eastern , and Central . In the prior system, operations were segmented by military branch and region. In contrast, each Theater Command is intended to function as a unified entity with joint operations across different military branches. The PLA on 1 August 2017 marked its 90th anniversary. Before
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#17327836197994108-444: The implementation of party committee decisions, instilling and maintaining party discipline, providing political education, and working with other components of the political work system. John Fraser (journalist) John Anderson Fraser CM (born June 5, 1944) is a Canadian journalist, writer and academic. He served as Master of Massey College in the University of Toronto from 1995 until his retirement in June 2014. He
4187-427: The military in an era of peace. The PLA reoriented itself to modernization, improving its fighting ability, and becoming a world-class force. Deng Xiaoping stressed that the PLA needed to focus more on quality rather than on quantity. The decision of the Chinese government in 1985 to reduce the size of the military by one million was completed by 1987. Staffing in military leadership was cut by about 50 percent. During
4266-405: The moral quality and self-cultivation of showing fraternal unity and taking pleasure in assisting others, the heroic spirit of being ready to take up cudgels for a just cause without caring for one's safety, the attitude of seeking advancement and studying hard, and the genuine spirit of matching words with deeds and enthusiastically carrying out one's duties. Chinese leaders have praised Lei Feng as
4345-404: The national curriculum. The phrase huó Léi Fēng ( 活雷锋 ; lit. "living Lei Feng") has become a noun (or adjective) for anyone who is seen as selfless, or anyone who goes out of their way to help others. The CCP's construction of Lei Feng as a celebrity soldier is unique to the PRC and differs from the more typical creation of military heroes by governments during times of war. In the PRC, Lei Feng
4424-447: The navy and air force. The PLA is also actively preparing for space warfare and cyber-warfare . In 2002, the PLA began holding military exercises with militaries from other countries. From 2018 to 2023, more than half of these exercises have focused on military training other than war, generally antipiracy or antiterrorism exercises involving combatting non-state actors. In 2009, the PLA held its first military exercise in Africa,
4503-416: The number of non-resident junior fellows; creating bursary support to non-resident junior fellows; pioneering academic support programs for "Writers in Exile" and "Scholars at Risk"; and establishing the Quadrangle Society in 1997 which extended the college's mandate to be a bridge community between "town and gown". The Quadrangle Society originally started with 99 (one fewer member than the Junior Fellowship at
4582-426: The paramilitary People's Armed Police and have been deployed as part of peacekeeping operations in Lebanon , the Republic of the Congo , Sudan , Ivory Coast , Haiti , and more recently, Mali and South Sudan . As of at least early 2024, China has not fought a war since 1979 and has only fought relatively minor conflicts since. The PLA is a component of the armed forces of China, which also includes
4661-453: The party has leadership over the armed forces and the CMC exercises supreme military command; the party and state CMCs are practically a single body by membership. Since 1989, the CCP general secretary has also held been the CMC Chairman; this grants significant political power as the only member of the Politburo Standing Committee with direct responsibilities for the armed forces. The Ministry of National Defense has no command authority; it
4740-417: The personification of altruism. Leaders who have written about Lei Feng include Deng Xiaoping , Zhou Enlai , and Jiang Zemin . His cultural importance is still reproduced and reinforced by the media and cultural apparatus of the Chinese party-state, including emphasizing the importance of moral character during Mao's era. Lei Feng's prominence in school textbooks has since declined, although he remains part of
4819-400: The railroad forces, the communications forces, and the strategic forces, as well as other separate forces (like engineering and construction, logistics and medical services), were established later on. In this early period, the People's Liberation Army overwhelmingly consisted of peasants. Its treatment of soldiers and officers was egalitarian and formal ranks were not adopted until 1955. As
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#17327836197994898-413: The rapid modernization of the PLAAF. In 1962, the PLA ground force also fought India in the Sino-Indian War . In a series of border clashes in 1967 with Indian troops, the PLA suffered heavy numerical and tactical losses. Before the Cultural Revolution , military region commanders tended to remain in their posts for long periods. The longest-serving military region commanders were Xu Shiyou in
4977-424: The same time consolidating by recruiting KMT troops and paramilitary forces behind Japanese lines into their forces. After the Japanese surrender in 1945, the CCP continued to use the National Revolutionary Army unit structures until the decision was made in February 1947 to merge the Eighth Route Army and New Fourth Army, renaming the new million-strong force the People's Liberation Army (PLA). The reorganization
5056-447: The successes and failures of the United States Armed Forces during the Kosovo War , the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan , the 2003 invasion of Iraq , and the Iraqi insurgency . All these lessons inspired China to transform the PLA from a military based on quantity to one based on quality. Chairman Jiang Zemin officially made a " revolution in military affairs " (RMA) part of the official national military strategy in 1993 to modernize
5135-448: The suggestion of the then don of hall, Marc Ozon), and has now expanded to over 200. He has taught university courses at York University (drama criticism) and the University of Toronto (Canadian culture, and currently the history of Canadian newspapers). At Massey, he founded the Canadian Institute for the Study of the Crown in Canada. In addition, he led the process that saw the College’s St. Catherine’s Chapel named by Queen Elizabeth as
5214-545: The third “chapel royal” in Canada following an association with the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. Fraser retired as master of Massey College in 2014 when he was named Master Emeritus and was appointed Founding Patron of the Quadrangle Society. He was succeeded by Hugh Segal , retired Senator from Ontario. Fraser has received honorary degrees from Memorial University of Newfoundland (D.Litt.), University of King's College in Halifax, Nova Scotia (D.C.L.), York University in Toronto (LL.D.), and Trinity College in
5293-418: The total—all of whom are CCP members. The PLA is not a traditional nation-state military. It is a part, and the armed wing, of the CCP and controlled by the party, not by the state. The PLA's primary mission is the defense of the party and its interests. The PLA is the guarantor of the party's survival and rule, and the party prioritizes maintaining control and the loyalty of the PLA. According to Chinese law,
5372-405: Was Conrad Black who, years later, was his employer when Fraser was editor of Saturday Night magazine. He subsequently received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Memorial University and a Master of Arts degree from the University of East Anglia . At 16, Fraser started summer work as a copy boy and junior reporter at the Toronto Telegram and in following summers worked as a journalist at
5451-423: Was US$ 296 billion in 2023, accounting for 12 percent of the world's defence expenditures . It is also one of the fastest modernizing militaries in the world, and has been termed as a potential military superpower, with significant regional defence and rising global power projection capabilities. In addition to wartime arrangements, the PLA is also involved in the peacetime operations of other components of
5530-483: Was a barrier to modernization and professionalization, and eroded party control. The 2010s anti-corruption campaigns and military reforms under Xi Jinping from the early-2010s were in part executed to address these problems. Following the PLA's suppression of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre , ideological correctness was temporarily revived as the dominant theme in Chinese military affairs. Reform and modernization have today resumed their position as
5609-463: Was a dominant foreign policy institution in the country. During the 1950s, the PLA with Soviet assistance began to transform itself from a peasant army into a modern one. Since 1949, China has used nine different military strategies, which the PLA calls "strategic guidelines". The most important came in 1956, 1980, and 1993. Part of this process was the reorganization that created thirteen military regions in 1955. In November 1950, some units of
5688-485: Was awarded the rarely-bestowed lifetime achievement Michener-Baxter Special Award for public service journalism. Fraser is married to Elizabeth MacCallum, and the couple have three daughters and one grandson. He is a committed Anglican , and has served as both a Sunday school teacher and as rector's warden at his former church, St. Clement's-Eglinton in Toronto, and as a Sunday school teacher at St. James Cathedral. As
5767-754: Was completed by late 1948. The PLA eventually won the Chinese Civil War, establishing the People's Republic of China in 1949. It then underwent a drastic reorganization, with the establishment of the Air Force leadership structure in November 1949, followed by the Navy leadership structure the following April. In 1950, the leadership structures of the artillery, armored troops, air defence troops, public security forces, and worker–soldier militias were also established. The chemical warfare defence forces,
5846-491: Was first presented to the public by Lin Biao in the first of many "Learn from Lei Feng" campaigns. The diary was full of accounts of Lei's admiration for Mao Zedong , his selfless deeds, and his desire to foment revolutionary spirit. Famously, he pledged that his only ambition was "to be a rustless screw" in the revolutionary cause. Lin's use of Lei's diary was part of a larger effort to improve Mao's image, which had suffered after
5925-706: Was nominated for the Governor General's Literary Award in non-fiction. A book on the American Ballet Theatre and Mikhail Baryshnikov , Private View , was a Book-of-the-Month Club alternate choice in 1989 and won a Dance Magazine "book of the year" award. In 2001, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada . For his professional lifetime in journalism, he was named to the Canadian News Hall of Fame (2016) and later, in 2020, he
6004-488: Was part of continuing public promotion of soldiers as exemplary models, and evidence of the People's Liberation Army's role as social and political support to the Communist government. Details of Lei Feng's life have been subject to dispute. While someone named Lei Feng may have existed, scholars generally believe the person depicted in the campaign was almost certainly a fabrication. Some observers noted, for instance, that
6083-615: Was the editor of Saturday Night magazine where he pioneered the use of mixed circulation with inserted copies in The Globe and Mail and other newspapers in the old Southam Newspaper Group across Canada, with circulation increasing from 115,000 to 400,000. He also began a "Saturday Night" imprint of books with the publishers HarperCollins Ltd. that produced nearly two dozen titles in five years. Fraser's journalism has been published in many leading international journals and newspapers, including The New York Times , The Washington Post ,
6162-653: Was the last of the Four Modernizations announced by Zhou Enlai and supported by Deng Xiaoping . In keeping with Deng's mandate to reform, the PLA has demobilized millions of men and women since 1978 and has introduced modern methods in such areas as recruitment and manpower, strategy , and education and training . In 1979, the PLA fought Vietnam over a border skirmish in the Sino-Vietnamese War where both sides claimed victory. However, western analysts agree that Vietnam handily outperformed
6241-432: Was young and joined a transportation unit of the People's Liberation Army at the age of twenty. According to his official biography, Lei died in 1962 at the age of 21 (22 by Chinese East Asian age reckoning , by which a newborn is age 1 at birth), when a telephone pole, struck by an army truck, hit him as he was directing the truck in backing up. Lei Feng was not widely known until after his death. In 1963, Lei Feng's Diary
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