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Q: For what reason did China carry out a policy of encouraging some people to become rich first after reform and opening up started in 1978? Dose this policy contradict equity, one of the principles of socialism? A: As is known to all, China turned to egalitarianism for some time after 1949, which resulted in a common poverty instead of a common prosperity. For this reason, China abandoned egalitarianism at the very beginning of its reform and initiated a policy of encouraging some regions and people to get rich before others to stimulate initiatives in improving productivity. This policy reflects the status quo of China's productive forces and the relations of production at the primary stage of socialism. It doesn't conflict with the principle of equity. Socialism is not characterized by poverty. On the contrary, it aims to eliminate poverty. To encourage some regions and people to get rich first does not mean widening the gap between rich and poor. Frankly speaking, if we were tolerant of the widening gap, there would be no more than a small fraction of a new bourgeois class emerging in some areas while most of the people would remain poor, given that the country has a population of more than 1 billion people and is still quite backward. We would consider it a failure if our policy led to a greater gap between rich and poor. Therefore, it is vital to strike a balance between partial prosperity and common prosperity. We encourage parts of the country and people to become rich via legitimate work and thereby push other areas and people forward toward a common prosperity, which is one of the goals and the essence of socialism. Nevertheless, when some areas and individuals achieve prosperity and the average persons' livelihood improves, problems of inequitable distribution of wealth and a widening gap between rich and poor arise. We take it as inevitable and tolerable that there do exist disparities in income and wealth among citizens in the course of achieving a common prosperity at the primary stage of socialism. But if these disparities increase and remain unsolved for a long time, major initiatives will undoubtedly be diminished, thus hampering the course of reform. A variety of policies are initiated in order to tackle this, including protecting legitimate income and confiscating money gained illegally, adjusting excessive income [through i.e. income tax], increasing the proportion of middle-income earners and raising the income of poorly paid workers, accelerating the building of a full-scale social security system, and making an overall plan for the harmonious development between urban and rural areas, between different regions, and between economy and society. It's our goal to achieve a common prosperity and encouraging some regions and people to become rich first is a practical way of heading toward this goal, which has already been proven by practice over the past two-plus decades. China's reform and opening up has been following this policy by first encouraging the development of coastal provinces and cities in east China, and then pursuing the strategy of western development and rejuvenation of the old industrial bases in the northeast. With developed areas boosting the underdeveloped regions, China is continuing toward the goal of building a well-off society in an all-around way.
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