Under feudal rule, marriage between men and women was brutal and inhumane. Women suffered oppression and pain even more acutely than men. Only with the victory of the workers’ and peasants’ revolution, when men and women achieved their initial economic liberation, would marital relations necessarily change and become free. At present, marriage between men and women has already laid the foundation for freedom; therefore, we should establish the principle of free marriage and abolish all feudal practices of arranged, forced, and commercial marriages. However, since women have only recently been liberated from feudal oppression, many of them still bear severe physical impairments—such as foot-binding—that have not yet been fully remedied. Moreover, their economic independence remains incomplete. Consequently, in matters of divorce at this stage, priority should be given to protecting women, placing most of the obligations and responsibilities arising from divorce on the man. Children are the masters of the new society. Given the historical neglect of child care under past social customs, special provisions must be made to safeguard their welfare. This regulation was promulgated and came into effect on November 1, 1931.  Chairman of the Central Executive Committee: Mao Zedong; Vice Chairmen: Xiang Ying and Zhang Guotai.

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Oo Red China, Issue 2, Page 131. November 1, 1931. The “Marriage Regulations” were promulgated by the Provisional Central Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic on December 6, 1931. Translated by the Chinese Soviet Foreign Workers’ Publishing House (Moscow) in 1933.