Did Mao mean to kill all those people in the beginning of The Great Leap Forward?

Answer 1

Yes, he meant to kill all those people. Maybe not at the start because he wanted to just industrialize China. But I doubt he cared after 15 million people died. Mao Zedong is worse than Hitler.

*I have to disagree with the above.*

More people died in China because far more people lived there.

Mao wanted to rapidly industrialize the nation, so he sent many farmers to do industrial work. Because of that, not enough food was being produced. This, in combination with bad weather conditions (floods and extreme drought) caused severe famine.

In 1959, the Yellow River flooded, which directly killed, either through starvation from crop failure or drowning, an estimated 2 million people. While other areas were affected in other ways as well. (Wikipedia)

Although many millions died, only a small percentage died from violence, the vast majority simply starved to death.

His policies failed. For instance, he launched the 'Four Pests Campaign'.

One of the pests that was to be exterminated, because they ate some of the grains, was the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. Before the leadership realised it, it caused great ecological inbalance, locust populations exploded, and swarmed the country. Making the situation even worse, instead of better.

I'm not saying he was a good person, he very much wanted to be in power, and anyone who disagreed with him would be prosecuted. He was a fool, and many people died because of that. However, to say he was worse than Hitler (or Stalin for that matter), is insane.

Hope this helped.