Socialist Transformation of Independent Handicrafts

It was an important part of the Party's general line in the transitional period to transform independent handicraft industry into socialist collective ownership of the working people through the path of cooperation. According to statistics in 1952, the output value of handicraft industry in China accounted for about 13% of the total output value of industry and agriculture, and the number of self-employed workers engaged in independent handicrafts industry in China was about 10 million. Later the Party began to implement the policy of "active leadership and steady progress" in the socialist transformation of handicraft industry, through the principles of political education, model demonstration, state assistance, voluntary participation and mutual benefit, at the same time the Party enhanced the awareness of craftsmen and enabled them to organize consciously.

There were three forms of organization: Firstly, the supply and marketing production teams engaged in handicraft industry. It was organized by independent handicraftsmen or cottage handicraftsmen through the processing and ordering of raw materials and products supplied by state-owned economy, supply cooperatives and marketing cooperatives or consumer cooperatives.

Secondly, form was building supply and marketing production cooperatives in handicraft industry. These cooperatives would lead a number of production teams, some of which were received by supply and marketing cooperatives or consumer cooperatives, and some of which were organized by supply cooperatives and marketing cooperatives themselves.

Thirdly, handicraft production cooperatives. These were cooperative factories based on collective production by handicraftsmen, which eventually transformed the private ownership of handicraft industry into collective ownership and led small producers in the handicraft industry to the socialist road.

In addition, a small number of self-employed workers in cities and towns were allowed to engage in service and repair activities, so as to supplement the services that could be neglected by state-owned industrial and commercial networks, maintain vigor in the market and facilitate the life of the masses.

By the end of 1954, 1.21 million handicraftsmen who joined the cooperative organizations. By the end of 1955, there were 68,000 handicraft cooperatives and cooperative groups with 2.2 million members.

In December 1955, the Party convened the Fifth National Conference on Handicraft Industrial Cooperation and formulated a comprehensive plan for the socialist transformation of handicraft industry.

In March 1956, when Mao Zedong reported on the handicraft industry in the relevant departments of the State Council, he gave the instructions of "Speed Up the Socialist Transformation of Handicrafts", which pointed out the direction for the socialist transformation of the handicraft industry as a whole.

Promoted by the climax of agricultural co-operation, in the spring of 1956, there was a great upsurge in the socialist transformation of handicraft industry across the country, and by the end of June, more than 90% of the handicraft workers in the country joined the cooperatives, basically realizing the socialist transformation of handicraft industries. The practice of socialist transformation of handicrafts in China was successful in general, but there were also some shortcomings and deviations.

The CPC Central Committee and Mao Zedong timely put forward the policy of "overall planning, overall arrangement, active leadership and steady progress", which ensured the successful completion of the socialist transformation of handicraft industry.