Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t12.9

v2.c10.s2.t12.9

Following the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Ai Qing became the Deputy Editor of *People's Literature* (《人民文学》) and a member of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles. The Chilean poet Pablo Neruda once described him as “the charming Ai Qing, old communist and prince of Chinese poets”. In 1957, however, he was labeled a ‘rightist’ and was sent to Heilongjiang and Xinjiang to do manual labour. This created a disruption of 20 years in his life and career, although he continued to write poetry through this period.