Mao himself claimed that a total of people were killed in attacks on "counter-revolutionaries" during the years 1950–1952.. Mao got this number from a report submitted by Xu Zirong, Deputy Public Security Minister, which stated counter-revolutionaries were executed, were imprisoned, and another were "subjected to control.": see . Because there was a policy to select "at least one landlord, and usually several, in virtually every village for public execution", the number of deaths range between 2 million and 5 million.: "By 1952 they had extended land reform throughout the countryside, but in the process somewhere between two and five million landlords had been killed." In addition, at least 1.5 million people, perhaps as many as 4 to 6 million, were sent to "reform through labour" camps where many perished. Mao played a personal role in organising the mass repressions and established a system of execution quotas, which were often exceeded. He defended these killings as necessary for the securing of power.
Mao himself claimed that a total of people were killed in attacks on "counter-revolutionaries" during the years 1950–1952.. Mao got this number from a report submitted by Xu Zirong, Deputy Public Security Minister, which stated counter-revolutionaries were executed, were imprisoned, and another were "subjected to control.": see . Because there was a policy to select "at least one landlord, and usually several, in virtually every village for public execution", the number of deaths range between 2 million and 5 million.: "By 1952 they had extended land reform throughout the countryside, but in the process somewhere between two and five million landlords had been killed." In addition at least 1.5 million people, perhaps as many as 4 to 6 million, were sent to "reform through labour" camps where many perished. Mao played a personal role in organising the mass repressions and established a system of execution quotas, which were often exceeded. He defended these killings as necessary for the securing of power.