S2 Ep2: Maoism, the Great Leap Forward / Famine and the Sino-Soviet Split
In the Shadows of Utopia: The Khmer Rouge and the Cambodian Nightmare
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The Failures of the Great Leap Forward
All of the policies enacted which were part of the great leap become critical failures. The war on nature, including the sparrow side we talked about earlier, led to huge numbers of insects descending on the crops remaining. Insecticides had been squandered in the early attempts to wipe out pests across the board and they were missing when they were needed most. Deforestation caused by the steel campaign led to soil erosion and water loss. Water irrigation schemes further disturbed the ecological balance, worsening the impact of inundating rains as well as droughts. In turn created the conditions that led to swarms of locusts.
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