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105-444: "Third Front" is a geo-military concept: it is relative to the "First Front" area that is close to the potential war fronts. The Third Front region covered 13 provinces and autonomous regions with its core area in the Northwest (including Shaanxi , Gansu , Ningxia , and Qinghai ) and Southwest (including today's Sichuan , Chongqing , Yunnan , and Guizhou ). Its development was motivated by national defense considerations following

210-481: A sub-provincial city ): The ten prefecture-level cities of Shaanxi are subdivided into 107 county-level divisions (30 districts , four county-level cities , and 73 counties ). The politics of Shaanxi is structured in a triple party-government system like all other governing institutions in mainland China. The Governor of Shaanxi is the highest-ranking official in the People's Government of Shaanxi. However, in

315-610: A General Staff report commissioned by deputy chief Yang Chengwu which evaluated the distribution of Chinese industry, noted that they were primarily concentrated in 14 major coastal cities which were vulnerable to nuclear attack or air raids, and recommended that the General Staff research measures to guard against a sudden attack. Major transportation hubs, bridges, ports and some dams were close to these major cities. Destruction of these infrastructures could lead to disastrous consequences. This evaluation prompted Mao to advocate for

420-581: A major role in China's burgeoning aircraft and aerospace industries, producing more than 50% of the R&;D and manufacturing equipment for the country's domestic commercial air industry. Nominal GDP for 2011 was 1,239 billion RMB ( US$ 196.7 billion) and GDP per capita was 21,729 RMB (US$ 3,179), ranking 17th in the PRC. In the first half of 2019, Shaanxi's total production value reached 1,162.557 billion yuan,

525-494: A means necessary for socialist development given the level of China's development at the time. In mobilizing and recruiting workers for Third Front Projects, the Party instructed recruiters to "take Mao's strategic thought as the guiding principle, teach employees to consider the big picture, resolutely obey the needs of the country, take pride in supporting Third Front construction ... and help solve employees' concrete problems." In

630-460: A political figure, idea, or geographic focus is often taken as a sign that the mentioned official or subject is rising. Editorials in the People's Daily are regarded both by foreign observers and Chinese readers as authoritative statements of official government policy. Distinction is made between editorials, commentaries, and opinions. Although all must be government approved, they differ sharply on

735-508: A race against time with American imperialism and Soviet revisionism." Policymakers adopted military-style thinking, framing project selection in the rhetoric of "choos[ing] the proper targets to attack" and "concentrat[ing] forces to wage wars of annihilation" on a focused number of projects. Workers themselves often linked their tasks to broader conflicts, for example describing the drilling of tunnels as an act in opposition to "American wolves," thereby advancing "the people of Vietnam's war " with

840-624: A report concluding that 48% of Third Front enterprises still had marketable products and favorable business prospects. In the Seventh Five-Year Plan between 1986 and 1990, Third Front plants not making a profit were allowed to shut down. Some Third Front plants moved out of the mountains and caves to nearby small and medium sized cities where the geography and transportation were less difficult. Plants with workshops spread across many places gathered in one place. Third Front plants, especially military plants, were encouraged to produce for

945-529: A strategic rear for retreat, and we should be prepared to go into the mountains [to become guerilla]. We need a place like this. The "Big Third Front" ( da sanxian ) included the Northwest and Southwest provinces like Qinghai, Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yunnan. In comparison, the "First Front" was composed of the major cities from Manchuria down to the Pearl River Delta and the "Second Front" referred to

1050-572: A study by the Committee to Protect Journalists . The People's Daily also maintains agreements with foreign newspapers to republish its content. The People's Daily is published by the People's Daily News Agency, a ministerial-level institution. The agency is also responsible for the publication of the nationalist tabloid Global Times . The People's Daily employs "writing task groups" ( Chinese : 写作小组 ; pinyin : xiězuò xiǎozǔ ) of various staff to compose editorial pieces to signal

1155-629: A variety of climates. Under the Köppen climate classification , the northern parts , including the Loess Plateau, have either a cold arid (Köppen BWk ) or cold semi-arid (Köppen BSk ), with cold and very dry winters, dry springs and autumns, and hot, humid summers. The area known as Guanzhong is mostly semi-arid, though there are a few areas with a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cwa ), with cool to cold winters, and hot, humid summers that often see early-season heatwaves. The southern portion

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1260-637: A war, while China's population and industries were concentrated on the east coast. As one of his inspirations for the Third Front, Mao cited the negative example of Chiang Kai-Shek 's failure to establish sufficient industry away from the coast prior to the Second Sino-Japanese war , resulting in the Nationalist government being forced to retreat to a small inland industrial base in the face of Japanese invasion. In April 1964, Mao read

1365-547: A year-on-year increase of 5.4%. The added value of the primary industry was 55.319 billion yuan, an increase of 4.5%; the second industry was 557.935 billion yuan, an increase of 4.2%; the tertiary industry was 549.303 billion yuan, an increase of 6.8%. Established in 1992, Baoji Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone was approved as a national hi-tech zone by the State Council. It has a long-term planned area of 40 km (15 sq mi). The transportation system around

1470-469: Is a national high-tech zone. It is surrounded by national highways and it is 30 minutes from Xi'an-Xianyang International Airport. Furthermore, it is ranked in the top three high-tech zones in China. Xi'an Software Park, established in December 1998, is the professional park for Xi'an to develop scale software and service outsourcing industries. The park has been appraised as a software industry base under

1575-459: Is a new economic zone composing the three major city-level economies of Western China: Xi'an , Chongqing and Chengdu . It is believed that the addition of Xi'an to the Triangle will spur economic growth in the region and allow the city an opportunity to capitalize on the commercial potential of its high-technology industries. Established in 1993, Xi'an Economic and Technology Development Zone

1680-535: Is geographically divided into three parts, namely Northern (or " Shaanbei "), Central ("Shaanzhong") and Southern Shaanxi (or " Shaannan "). Northern Shaanxi makes up the southeastern portion of the Ordos Basin and mainly comprises the two prefectural cities of Yulin and Yan'an on the northern Loess Plateau , demarcated from the Ordos Desert and the grasslands of Inner Mongolia 's Ordos City by

1785-592: Is much more humid and lies in the humid subtropical zone, with more temperate winters and long, hot, humid summers. Annual mean temperature is roughly between 8 and 16 °C (46 and 61 °F), with January temperatures ranging from −11 to 3.5 °C (12.2 to 38.3 °F) and July temperatures ranging from 21 to 28 °C (70 to 82 °F). Besides the provincial capital of Xi'an, other cities include: Baoji , Hanzhong , Lintong , Tongchuan , Xianyang , Yan'an and Ankang . Shaanxi consists of ten prefecture-level divisions : all prefecture-level cities (including

1890-726: Is one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the Silk Road , which leads to Europe, the Arabian Peninsula, and Africa. The region was briefly governed as the Three Qins after the fall of the Qin dynasty . This is the origin of one of Shaanxi's two abbreviations, 秦 ( Qin ), the other being 陝 ( Shaan ). Then it was conquered by Liu Bang during the Chu-Han Contention . Under

1995-531: Is one of the centers of ancient Chinese civilization. The central part of Shaanxi, known as Guanzhong , where the provincial capital Xi'an is located, is more populous compared to the others ( Shaannan and Shaanbei ), Religion in Shaanxi The predominant religions in Shaanxi are Chinese folk religions , Taoist traditions and Chinese Buddhism . According to surveys conducted in 2007 and 2009, 7.58% of

2100-460: Is rather infrequent, means that the government has reached a final decision on an issue. During the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre , the People's Daily editorial of 26 April , which condemned "unlawful parades and demonstrations," marked a significant moment in the newspaper's history. The editorial increased tension between the government and protesters, and top CCP leaders argued about whether to revise it. An article that compiles

2205-424: Is reflected in the slogans at the time such as “Choose the best people and best horses for the Third Front," “prepare for war, prepare for famine, for the people” ( 备战备荒, 为人民 ; bèizhàn bèihuāng, wéi rénmín ), and "dig tunnels deep, store grain everywhere, never hegemony." Incomplete statistics show that between 1964 and 1970, 380 large projects, 145 thousand workers and 38 thousand units of equipment, were moved from

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2310-719: Is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints of the CCP in multiple languages. The paper was established on 15 June 1948 and was published in Pingshan County, Hebei , until its offices were moved to Beijing in March 1949. Ever since its founding, the People's Daily has been under direct control of

2415-482: The Daqing oilfield and use revolutionary spirit to overcome all difficulties." The Party did not attempt to hide the challenges of working on the Third Front, however, and told local officials to "speak clearly about the difficulties, not boast, and not make empty promises." Because Chinese policymakers believed that the risks of invasion from foreign powers were imminent, Third Front workers were instructed to "engage in

2520-552: The Gwoyeu Romatzyh transcription (1928) for 陝 , "Sh aa n". Nonetheless, the vowels and consonants of shǎn 陝 and shān 山 are distinguished in the more conservative Jin Chinese languages native to the two provinces, as shown on the chart to the right (refer to IPA for Jin Chinese for further information). This conservative phonology is reflected in the historical spelling of Shaanxi, " Shensi ", known to

2625-773: The Ming Great Wall . Central Shaanxi is also known as the Guanzhong region, and comprises the drainage basin of lower Wei River east of Mount Liupan and north of the Qinling Mountains , where the majority of Shaanxi's population reside. Southern Shaanxi comprises the three prefectural cities in the edge of the historical Bashu region south of the Qinling Mountains and includes the three mountainous cities of Hanzhong , Ankang and Shangluo . The area comprising Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Henan formed

2730-684: The Nationalist government , preparing for the Second Sino-Japanese War , drafted a policy to move industries to Northwest and Southwest of the country, in particular to develop the mining and heavy industry. Although the policy laid the seeds of industrial development in the Northwest, during the Civil War development eventually died down. After the failure of the Great Leap Forward , China's leadership slowed

2835-660: The People's Daily launched a commercial software service called Renmin Shenjiao (People's Proofreader) that provides outsourced content censorship. The People's Daily also provides artificial intelligence companies in China with training data that CCP leaders consider permissible. The People's Daily also maintains a multilingual internet presence; and established the People's Daily Online (人民网) in 1997. The website of People's Daily includes content in Arabic, French, Russian, Spanish, Japanese and English. In comparison to

2940-677: The People's Daily stated that the novel coronavirus had "multiple origins." In November 2020, the People's Daily published a claim that COVID-19 was "imported" into China. In January 2021, the People's Daily inaccurately attributed deaths in Norway to the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine . In 2020, the United States Department of State designated the People's Daily a foreign mission , thereby requiring it to disclose more information about its operations in

3045-721: The Tangut -led Western Xia contested their border in Shaanxi. Western Xia found the Luōwùchéng (罗兀城) frontier fort in 1071 but was taken by Song in 1081. Under the Ming dynasty , Shaanxi was established with the founding of the Shaanxi Provincial Administration Commission in 1376, whose administration also included the modern provinces of Gansu , Ningxia , and part of Qinghai . During this dynasty, most visitors from Central and West Asia entered

3150-498: The Third Five-Year Plan should “solve the problems of food, clothes, and other life necessities” (jiejue chichuanyong). Zhou Enlai , in his report of the State Council on March 28, also reported that “[the government] should put agriculture in the primary place of the nation's economy. The economic planning should follow the priorities such that agriculture comes first, light industries comes next, heavy industries have

3255-442: The 1965 to 1980 period was 20.52 billion RMB (the equivalent of the equivalent of US$ 2.5 billion). From 1964-1974, China invested more than 40% of its industrial capacity in Third Front regions. Ultimately, construction of the Third Front cost accounting for more than a third of China's spending over the 15 year period in which the Third Front construction occurred. The Third Front was the most expensive industrialization campaign of

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3360-457: The CCP's top leadership. Deng Tuo and Wu Lengxi served as editor-in-chief from 1948 to 1958 and 1958–1966, respectively, but the paper was in fact controlled by Mao Zedong 's personal secretary Hu Qiaomu . The newspaper is the official "mouthpiece" (喉舌) of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party . It is often viewed as most representative of the mainstream perspective of China's government. A large number of articles devoted to

3465-672: The Dukes of Shao and Zhou marked their borders along Shan plateau ( 陝塬 , now Zhanbian plateau). In Chinese typing , the toponym 陝 often got mixed up with "valley" 陜 (note: distinguish 㚒 and 夾 ). Simplified characters merged the two as 陕 . The alphabet rendering of Shaanxi 陝西 and its neighboring province Shanxi 山西 are troublesome in Beijing Mandarin because their pronunciation differs only in tone (rendered as Sh ǎ nxī and Sh ā nxī in pinyin transcription, 1958). To avoid confusion, mainland China recognized

3570-592: The Economic Commission issued regulations for projects which were being relocated to the Third Front, mandating that all relocated projects had to be approved by the central Party and that none could be approved by local governments themselves. Administrative changes occurred in February 1965, as the State Council further consolidated central control of the Third Front construction. It converted

3675-681: The Europeans in the 18th century. "Shensi" was recognized in the 1906 Chinese postal romanization . "Shensi" continued to be popular until 1987 when the PRC banned pre-PRC romanizations. Shaanxi is considered one of the cradles of Chinese civilization. Thirteen feudal dynasties established their capitals in the province during a span of more than 1,100 years, from the Zhou dynasty to the Tang dynasty. The province's principal city and current capital, Xi'an ,

3780-614: The First Front, that new projects should be built concealed in the mountains, and that industrial enterprises, research institutes, and universities should be moved to the Third Front. Every Third Front project was a state-owned enterprise. The most significant Small Third Front Project was Shanghai's. At its largest, the Shanghai Small Front had 54,000 workers, 17,000 families, and 81 work units. The "rear base" in Anhui

3885-637: The Guiyang-Kunming lines linked all southwest provincial capitals using rail for the first time. The Xiangfan-Chongqing and Hunan-Guizhou connected the central and western provinces by rail for the first time. Chinese policy-makers determined that vehicle manufacturing should be advanced, and therefore the First Automotive Works transferred a third of its workforce to develop the Second Automobile Works as part of

3990-876: The Han dynasty, the Northern Silk Road was expanded to advance exploration and military purposes to the west. This Northern Silk Road is the northernmost of the Silk Roads and is about 2,600 kilometres (1,600 mi) in length. It connected the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an to the west over the Wushao Ling Pass to Wuwei and emerging in Kashgar before linking to ancient Parthia . The Xiongnu -led kingdom Northern Xia (407–431) set its capital in Tongwancheng . The Northern Song dynasty and

4095-481: The Mao-era. Operating on the principle of "choose the best people and best horses for the Third Front," ( 好人好马上三线 ; hǎorén hǎomǎ shàngsānxiàn ) many skilled engineers, scientists, and intellectuals were transferred to Third Front facilities. In this slogan, the "best horses" refers to the best available equipment and resources. Third Front construction methods fused both low-tech and high-tech techniques. In 1937

4200-568: The National Torch Program, national software industry base, national software export base, city demonstrational area of national service outsourcing base. It is one of the four parks with "double bases" of software in China. Xi'an Software Park assembles 90% of enterprises engaging in software and service outsourcing in Xi'an. There were nearly 780 companies, of which foreign-funded enterprises account for 170, and over 71,000 jobholders in

4305-611: The PLA's enforcement of political discipline and suppression of the factions that had emerged during the Cultural Revolution. Those who did not return to work would be viewed as engaging in "splittist activities" ( fenlie huodong ) which risked undermining preparations to defend China from potential invasion. The perceived necessity of rushing construction in preparation for foreign invasion, along with constraints on resources, resulted in defects in many Third Front projects. Among

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4410-488: The Party established centralized organizations to direct the Third Front construction. The highest Third Front-specific administrative body was the Third Front Construction Support and Examination Small Group , which was tasked with providing physical and financial resources for the building of the Third Front. This Small Group was led by Economic Commission Vice Director Gu Mu . It also formed

4515-521: The People's Government of Shaanxi was established in Xi'an . Ma Minfang was then appointed as the first Governor of Shaanxi. As of the mid-19th century, Shaanxi exported animal skins, wine, liquor, and musk . Money loans were also common, with Shaanxi business people involved in the Guangzhou loan business. Shaanxi commonly imported European animal skins, watches, Chinese language books, and cloth. Shaanxi

4620-656: The Planning Commission recommended that the First and Second Fronts no longer view supporting the Third Front as their "primary task," instead downgrading the Third Front assistance to an "important task." The Planning Commission also stated concerns about the amount of Third Front funding leading to neglect of heavy industry elsewhere, as well as insufficient investment in agriculture. After a Party Work Conference in May 1973 resolved to re-direct state investment efforts from

4725-692: The Shaanxi Lu (circuit), governed from modern Xi'an in 997. The Yuan dynasty established Shaanxi Province (Yuan dynasty) , governed by a Branch Secretariat in 1286. After the founding of the Qing dynasty, Gansu was split from Shaanxi, but both provinces were governed under the Viceroy of Shaan-Gan . The Lantian Man site, with hominin fossils from approximately one million years ago, was found in Lantian County in northwestern Shaanxi province, near

4830-633: The Small Third Front). Other key leadership, including Deng Xiaoping, Liu Shaoqi , and Li Fuchun, did not fully support the notion of the Third Front. Instead, they continued to emphasize the coastal development and consumer focus pursuant to the Third Five Year Plan. In their view, small-scale commerce should be emphasized to raise the standard of living. The Gulf of Tonkin Incident on August 2, 1964, however, quickly changed

4935-709: The Southwest Railroad Construction headquarters to oversee railroad development. Another body, the Southwest Third Front Preparatory Small Group, was established to oversee regional construction and planning. It was led by Li Jingquan . It in turn established a planning group to administer the industrial complex being developed in Panzhihua and another planning group to administer conventional weapons production around Chongqing. On December 1, 1964,

5040-606: The Third Five Year Plan, consistent with its changing focus to preparations for the possibility that "the imperialists [would] launch an aggressive war against China." The hallmark of the Third Front Movement was a strategic shift to China's interior. On August 12, 1964, Zhou Enlai approved enormous industrial development in southwest China: Panzhihua Iron and Steel (in Sichuan), Liupanshui coal mines (in Guizhou), and

5145-781: The Third Front Preparatory Small Group into the Southwest Third Front Commission and required it to work with central ministries in fulfilling needs for labor, equipment, and building materials. The State Council put this Commission within the Economic Commission's supervision and then within the jurisdiction of the Infrastructure Committee when it was created in March 1965. In an August 19, 1965 report, Li Fuchun , Bo Yibo and Luo Ruiqing suggested that no new projects should be constructed in major cities in

5250-424: The Third Front construction was relatively isolated, close knit communities with a high degree of social capital formed, which also helped facilitate the eventual privatization of Third Front plants. Shaanxi Shaanxi is a province in Northwestern China . It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north, Shanxi and Henan to the east, Hubei , Chongqing , and Sichuan to

5355-406: The Third Front railroad projects built between 1969 and 1971, all but the Chengdu-Kunming railway suffered from major defects. Three such projects were completed in the early 1970s but still not fully operational until the late 1970s. The primary achievement of railroad construction during the Third Front construction was the building of ten new interprovincial lines. Building the Chengdu-Kunming and

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5460-501: The Third Front region. More than 1,100 large and medium-sized projects were established during the Third Front period. With large projects such as Chengdu-Kunming Railway , Panzhihua Iron and Steel , Second Auto Works , the Third Front Movement stimulated previously poor and agricultural economies in China's southwest and northwest. Dozens of cities, such as Mianyang , Deyang , Panzhihua in Sichuan, Guiyang in Guizhou, Shiyan in Hubei , emerged as major industrial cities. However,

5565-452: The Third Front slowed during 1966. As the Cultural Revolution ignited leftist extremism, Lin Biao , Chen Boda also replaced Li Fuchun, Peng Dehuai , and Deng Xiaoping as the actual leaders of the Third Front Movement. By comparison to the rest of the country, Third Front work was less disrupted by the Cultural Revolution, consistent with the broader pattern that central officials acted to protect national security-related work units throughout

5670-399: The Third Front to the northeast and the coastal regions, the Third Front was no longer the country's most critical economic objective. Agriculture and light industry became more important priorities. As Reform and Opening Up began in 1978, China began to gradually wind down Third Front projects with a "shut down, cease, merge, transform, and move" strategy. In 1984, the State Council issued

5775-616: The Third Front, China built a self-sufficient base industrial base area as a strategic reserve in the event of war with the Soviet Union or the United States. The campaign was centrally planned. It was carried out primarily in secret, and was only mentioned in the People's Daily for the first time in 1978. China built 1,100 Third Front projects (encompassing 1,945 industrial enterprises and research institutions) between 1965 and 1980. Major universities, including both Tsinghua University and Peking University , opened campuses in Third Front cities. The overall cost of Third Front projects during

5880-446: The Third Front, for example, required structural reinforcement for the caverns into which they were built and tunnels to allow exhaust to escape. As Planning Commission Director, Li Fuchun set design rules stating that Third Front projects should not attempt to be "big and complete" or incorporate major administrative, social service, or other buildings not involved in production. Instead, project leaders were directed to make do with what

5985-422: The Third Front. Rural recruits were inclined to view it as an advancement from work in the countryside to better compensated industrial work. These material benefits helped ease the family separations that could occur as a result of Third Front work assignments. Urban recruits who already worked at state-owned enterprises in more developed coastal areas were more likely to be apprehensive because they already received

6090-437: The United States. Third Front factories often assigned workers to read the classic Mao speeches Remember Norman Bethune , The Foolish Old Man who Moved Mountains , and Serve the People . After Nixon's China trip in 1972, investment to the Third Front region gradually declined. Rapprochement between the United States and China decreased the fear of invasion which motivated the Third Front construction. In August 1972,

6195-437: The Zhenbao Island incident as part of broader pattern of aggression. Perceiving the border clash in connection with the 1968 Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, Chinese policy-makers became concerned that the Soviet Union might view the Chinese domestic turmoil during the Cultural Revolution as a reason for similar military intervention. The central Party's efforts to accelerate Third Front work in June 1969 also became entwined with

6300-418: The amount of official authoritativeness they contain by design – from the top. For example, although an opinion piece is unlikely to contain views opposed to those of the government, it may express a viewpoint, or it may contain a debate that is under consideration and reflect only the opinions of the writer: an editorial trial balloon to assess internal public opinion. By contrast, an official editorial, which

6405-406: The benefits of working at such enterprises. If such urban recruits declined a Third Front assignment, they would lose their Party membership and right to work at state-owned enterprises. Third Front workers did, however, receive a "subsidy to keep secrets" ( baomi fei ). According to academic Covell F. Meyskens's analysis of remuneration based on Third Front work unit gazetteers, approximately 75% of

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6510-476: The building of railroads to connect Sichuan, Yunnan, and Guizhou. The Third Front construction was primarily carried out in secret, with the location for Third Front projects following the principle of “close to the mountains, dispersed, and hidden” ( 靠山, 分散, 隐蔽 ; kàoshān, fēnsàn, yǐnbì ). This principle was motivated by national defense considerations; plants were required to be hidden in the mountains and were not allowed to be geographically clustered to minimize

6615-493: The campaign. In Sichuan province, China developed an integrated nuclear sector which included uranium mining and processing facilities. Electronics manufacturing expanded during the Third Front and by 1980, inland China accounted for more than half of the country's electronics production capacity and work force. Major production facilities were built in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Guizhou, with the most widely known electronics factory being Changhong Electric in Mianyang, Sichuan. In

6720-399: The city of Xi'an. Scientists classify Lantian Man as a subspecies of Homo erectus . The fossils are displayed at the Shaanxi History Museum , Xi'an, China. The geography of the area is described as being part of the Ordos Desert in the north along the border with Inner Mongolia, the Loess Plateau in the central part of the province, the Qin Mountains (Qinling) running east to west in

6825-491: The civilian market ( junzhuanmin ). As plants built during the Third Front construction were privatized over the period 1980 to 2000, many became owned by former managers and technicians. As one example, Shaanxi Auto Gear General Works was privatized and became Shaanxi Fast Auto Drive Company; as of 2022 it is the largest automotive transmission manufacturer and its annual revenues exceed US$ 10 billion. Through its distribution of infrastructure, industry, and human capital around

6930-423: The coastal areas to the Third Front region. Most of these firms came from cities like Shanghai , Beijing , Shenyang , Dalian , Tianjin, Nanjing . Approximately 400 state-owned enterprises were re-located from coastal cities to secret locations in China's interior regions. In 1969, Third Front construction accelerated following the Chinese-Soviet border clash at Zhenbao Island. Chinese policy-makers interpreted

7035-402: The concept of the Third Front to locate critical infrastructure and national defense facilities away from areas where they would be vulnerable to invasions. Describing the geographical foundation of the concept, he stated: Our first front is coastal regions, second front is the line that cuts from Baotou to Lanzhou and southwest is the third front ... in the period of the atomic bomb, we need

7140-461: The country via Shaanxi. One of the most devastating earthquakes in history occurred near Hua Shan in southeastern Shaanxi on January 23, 1556, killing an estimated 830,000 people (see 1556 Shaanxi earthquake ). The end of the short-lived Jiangxi Soviet signaled the beginning of the Long March by Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communists to the Shaanxi Soviet at Yan'an. The administrative evolution of Shaanxi: The Northern Song established

7245-403: The country's interior. Mao objected to the preliminary proposal because ”[t]he Third Five-Year Plan […] need[s] to set basic industries in the Southwest.” He said that agricultural and defense industries are like fists, basic industries are like the hip. “The fists cannot be powerful unless the hip is well seated.” According to Mao's judgment, there was possibility that China would be involved in

7350-406: The country, the Third Front created favorable conditions for subsequent market development, private enterprise, and township and village enterprises . Once remote regions that were part of the Third Front continue to benefit from the influx of specialists during the Third Front construction and many enterprises, including many private ones, are legacies of the movement. Because each plant built during

7455-406: The country. Panzhihua, for example, was less impacted by the Cultural Revolution. Besides newly built large projects, many Third Front plants were spinoffs or entirely moved from existing plants in other parts of the country. In a document issued in early 1965, plants in the First and Second Fronts were required to contribute their best equipment and workers to the Third Front Movement. This priority

7560-1005: The cradle of Chinese civilization. During the Republican era , the city of Yan'an was near the endpoint of the Long March by the Chinese Red Army , who fled from Jiangxi after the Chinese Soviet Republic were destroyed by the Kuomintang armies, and became the birthplace of the Chinese Communist Revolution from late 1935 to early 1947 and the Communists formed the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region in constituent parts of Shaanxi. The vast majority of

7665-542: The creation of a heavy industrial zone as a safe haven for retreat in the event of foreign invasion during State Planning Meetings in May 1964. Subsequently referred to as the Big Third Front, this inland heavy industrial base was to be built up with the help of enterprises re-located from the coast. At a June 1964 Politburo meeting, Mao also advocated that each province should also establish its own military industrial complex as an additional measure (subsequently named

7770-539: The damage of air strikes. These priorities reflected Communist Party leaders' revolutionary experiences as guerillas. Because construction of Third Front projects was based on these non-economic considerations, projects were extremely costly. Dispersing new or re-located industry in rugged terrain required major new infrastructure for utilities, communication, and transportation. Facilities such as factories were sometimes built in subterranean complexes which greatly increased costs. The twenty subterranean powerplants built during

7875-456: The designs of many Third Front projects were uneconomic due to their location or deficient due to their hurried construction. For national defense reasons, location choices for the Third Front projects followed the guiding principle “Close to mountains, dispersed, hidden” ( kaoshan, fensan, yinbi ). Many Third Front projects were located in remote areas that were hard to access and far away from supplies and potential markets. The Third Front Movement

7980-607: The discussion about the Third Five-Year Plan. Mao became concerned that the United States could strike China's nuclear weapons facilities in Lanzhou and Baotou and advocated even more strongly for development of the Third Front. Other key leadership's fear of attack by the United States increased also, and the Third Front received broad support thereafter. In 1965, Yu Qiuli was given the lead role in developing

8085-402: The epidemic domestically while "presenting AIDS as a relatively innocuous social problem for the country." A 2013 study of the People's Daily coverage of the 2002–2004 SARS outbreak reported that it "regurgitated triumph and optimism" and framed the outbreak as an "opportunity to showcase China's scientific achievements, and the strength of national spirits, as well as the wise leadership of

8190-877: The escalation of the Vietnam War after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident , the Sino-Soviet Split and small-scale border skirmishes between China and the Soviet Union. The Third Front campaign industrialized part of China's rugged interior and agricultural region. Between 1964 and 1980, China invested 205 billion yuan in the Third Front Region, accounting for 39.01% of total national investment in basic industries and infrastructure. Millions of factory workers, cadres , intellectuals, military personnel, and tens of millions of construction workers, flocked to

8295-408: The fourteen largest cities in China's potentially vulnerable regions included approximately 60% of the country's manufacturing, 50% of its chemical industries, and 52% of its national defense industries. In particular, the northeast was China's industrial center. China's population centers were concentrated in eastern coastal areas where they would be vulnerable to attack by air or water. In constructing

8400-430: The late 1960s and the early 1970s, nearly all work units in China's aerospace industry were established via the Third Front. These Third Front Projects benefitted China's space program through the launch of Dong Fang Hong 1 (China's first satellite) in 1970, expansion of Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center , building Xichang Satellite Launch Center , and building Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center . On September 11, 1964,

8505-437: The lowest priority”. In early 1963, a central planning team (led by Li Fuchun , Li Xiannian , Tan Zhenlin , Bo Yibo ) put “solving the problems of food, clothes, and other life necessities” (解决人民的吃穿用) as the priority of economic works in their proposal for the Third Five-Year Plan. The preliminary draft for the Third Five Year Plan, of which Deng Xiaoping was a major author, had no provision for largescale industrialization in

8610-566: The middle tier among China's administrative divisions. The fossil fuel and high technology sectors compose the two largest industries in Shaanxi Province. The high technology sector includes aircraft and aerospace industries and Shaanxi produces more than 50% of the R&;D and manufacturing equipment for the country's domestic commercial aviation industry. The meaning of the province, "Shan's west", traces to circa 1000 BC when

8715-630: The most important editorials was released by the People's Daily during the student movement. An analysis of the wording of all the issues of the People's Daily from 1995 to 2000 was used in the writing of The First Series of Standardized Forms of Words with Non-standardized Variant Forms . The People's Daily maintains a unit called People's Data that conducts overseas social media data collection and analysis for police, judicial authorities, CCP organizations. People's Data also has data sharing agreements in place with various companies such as DiDi and Temu 's parent company Pinduoduo . In 2022,

8820-456: The official perspective, it was a political privilege to be selected as a Third Front recruit. Among the important recruitment mechanisms were oath-swearing ceremonies or mobilization meetings held at urban work units or rural communes . At these events, local officials exhorted crowds to join the Third Front construction effort. The Party instructed them to urge workers to "learn from the PLA and

8925-622: The oldest of the Four Ancient Capitals , being the capital for the Western Zhou , Western Han , Jin , Sui and Tang dynasties . Xianyang , which served as the capital of the Qin dynasty (221–202 BC), is just north across the Wei River. The other prefecture -level cities into which the province is divided are Ankang , Baoji , Hanzhong , Shangluo , Tongchuan , Weinan , Yan'an and Yulin . The province

9030-499: The original Chinese version, the foreign-language version offers less in-depth discussion of domestic policies and affairs and more editorials about China's foreign policies and motives. The People's Daily in recent years has been expanding on overseas social media platforms. It has millions of followers on its Facebook page and its accounts on Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. An unusually high proportion of its followers are virtually inactive and are likely to be fake users, according to

9135-481: The pace of industrialization. It invested more on in China's coastal regions and focused on the production of consumer goods. Construction of the Third Front reversed these trends, developing industry and using mass mobilization for the construction of such industrial projects, an approached that had been suspended after the failures of the Great Leap Forward. In February 1962, Chen Yun had proposed that

9240-446: The park by the end of 2008. Yangling Agriculture Hi-Tech Industrial Zone was approved as a national-level hi-tech development zone by State Council in 1997. It is 82 km (51 mi) from Xi'an to the east and 70 km (43 mi) from Xi'an Xianyang International Airport. Nearly all the people in Shaanxi are ethnic Han Chinese , with pockets of Hui population in the northwestern region (adjacent to Ningxia). Shaanxi province

9345-423: The party and effective measures to protect the lives of ordinary citizens." In February 2020, the People's Daily published an article stating that the novel coronavirus "did not necessarily originate in China." In March 2020, the online insert of the People's Daily , distributed by The Daily Telegraph , published an article stating that Traditional Chinese medicine "helps fight coronavirus." In May 2020,

9450-534: The population believes and is involved in ancestor veneration , while 1.57% of the population identifies as Christian. The reports didn't give figures for other types of religion; 90.85% of the population may be either irreligious or involved in worship of nature deities , Buddhism, Confucianism , Taoism, folk religious sects , and small minorities of Muslims . Professional sports teams based in Shaanxi include: People%27s Daily The People's Daily ( Chinese : 人民日报 ; pinyin : Rénmín Rìbào )

9555-413: The population of Shaanxi is Han Chinese , with Hui , Manchu and Mongol being the more significant ethnic minorities . Mandarin Chinese is the main spoken language in Shaanxi, including Central Plains Mandarin and Southwestern Mandarin dialects; another variety of Chinese , Jin Chinese , is also spoken in the regions neighboring Shanxi. Shaanxi is China's 15th largest economy , ranking within

9660-837: The province's dual party-government governing system, the Governor is considered to have less power than the Shaanxi Chinese Communist Party Provincial Committee Secretary ( 中共陕西省委书记 ), colloquially termed the "Shaanxi CCP Party Chief "; since the Governor is always ranked as the First-Deputy Secretary in the Shaanxi Chinese Communist Party Provincial Committee. Shaanxi was established as a provincial government since Qing dynasty . On 10 January 1950,

9765-647: The seven pioneer EPZs with the function of bonded logistics in China. XEPZ is under the leadership of the Administrative Committee of Xi'an Economic and Technological Development Zone (XETDZ), which is designated by Xi'an municipal government to exercise economic and administrative power within the zone. XEPZ is a special economic zone. By now, there are more than 40 enterprises home and abroad settled in XEPZ. The pillar industries feature aviation, machinery, electronics and new energy. The Western Triangle

9870-453: The significance of certain pieces or their relationship to the official views of the CCP. These groups are published under "signatures" (i.e., pen names : 署名 shǔmíng ) that may correspond with the topic and weight of a piece, and what specific government or CCP body is backing it, often with homophonous references to their purpose. During the AIDS epidemic , the People's Daily downplayed

9975-424: The smaller cities located further inland from the First Front. The "Small Third Front" ( xiao sanxian ) referred to rugged or remote areas in more major provinces like Shanxi, Anhui, and Hebei. As with the Big Third Front, Chinese policymakers intended Small Third Front to form a part of a network of military and industrial power that could withstand invasion or nuclear attack. Prior to the Third Front construction,

10080-624: The south central part, and subtropical climate south of the Qinling. In between the Loess Plateau and the Qinling lies the Wei River Valley, or Guanzhong , a cradle of early Chinese civilization. Going clockwise, Shaanxi borders Shanxi (E, NE), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ningxia (NW), and Inner Mongolia (N). In terms of number of bordering provincial-level divisions, Shaanxi ties Inner Mongolia. Due to its large span in latitude, Shaanxi has

10185-471: The south, and Gansu and Ningxia to the west. Shaanxi covers an area of over 205,000 km (79,000 sq mi) with about 37 million people, the 16th-largest in China. Xi'an  – which includes the sites of the former capitals Fenghao and Chang'an  – is the provincial capital and largest city in Northwest China and also one of the oldest cities in China and

10290-401: The studied work units paid salaries above the national norm for the industrial sector. Aside from material consequences, some urban and rural workers saw Third Front work favorably because it was to express their commitment to building Chinese socialism through bringing industry to undeveloped regions and building an industrial base to help protect China in the event of invasion. Construction of

10395-462: The zone includes Xi'an-Xianyang International Airport and National Highway 310, and industries operating within the zone include auto parts, electronics, IT, pharmaceuticals and bioengineering industries and new materials. Shaanxi Xi'an Export Processing Zone (XEPZ) was approved on 21 June 2002 by the State Council for its establishment and was put on 5 April 2004. As the first state-level export processing zone in northwest China, XEPZ has become one of

10500-548: Was a major recipient of China's investment in industrial capacity during the Third Front campaign. The fossil fuel and high technology sectors compose the two largest industries in Shaanxi province. During 2009, the province ranked third in China for production of coal, natural gas and crude oil. As the home of several of the leading universities and research institutes in Western China, Shaanxi province also plays

10605-526: Was approved as a national zone in 2000. The zone is 20 minutes from Xi'an Xianyang International Airport, and national highways pass through. It has formed four pillar industries: automotive, electronics, food, and new materials industries. So far, the zone has attracted more than 1,700 enterprises. Xi'an HTDZ opened its gates in 1991. It was established as a "pivotal location" for investment by high-tech industry companies in central and northwest China. Established in 1991, Xi'an Hi-Tech Industrial Development Zone

10710-532: Was available, including building rammed earth housing so that more resources could be directed to production. This policy came to be expressed through the slogan, "First build the factory and afterward housing." Potential Third Front workers had to meet physical requirements and had to undergo a political review. The Party forbid recruitment of those whose families were "landlords, rich peasant, counterrevolutionary, bad element, or [...] rightist." Third Front workers had varying reactions to being selected to work on

10815-516: Was busy into the early 1970s; like the rest of the Third Front, its work slowed as China and the United States developed their diplomatic relationship. The Shanghai Small Front office ultimately shut down in 1991. To recruit and develop the labor force responsible for building Third Front projects, the CCP sought to develop a labor force committed to the Third Front campaign as a way to build socialist modernity. The Party emphasized austere living and working, although not as an end in-and-of-itself, but as

10920-613: Was carried out in a hurry. Many Third Front projects were simultaneously being designed, constructed, and put in production, ( biansheji, bianshigong, bianshengchan ). After rapprochement with the United States reduced the national defense considerations underlying the Third Front, investment in its projects decreased. Since the reform of state-owned enterprises starting in the 1980s, many Third Front plants went bankrupt, though some others reinvented themselves and continued to serve as pillars in their respective local economies or were developed into successful private enterprises. Mao created

11025-412: Was the centerpiece of the project and served as "a multi-function manufacturing base for anti-aircraft and anti-tank weaponry. By 1966, it was producing arms including rocket-propelled grenades and anti-aircraft weapons. Steel mills, chemical plants, instrumentation factories, electronic factories, and extensive road infrastructure were also built in the Shanghai Small Front. The Shanghai Small Third Front

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