On Emergency War Mobilization
Order No. 12 of the Central Executive Committee
(October 13, 1932)

The ever more rapid development of the revolution throughout the country, and
especially the unprecedented great victories and expansion achieved by the sovi-cts and the Red Army all over the country, have caused the imperialist
Guomindang's Fourth Encirclement Campaign to suffer repeated disastrous defeats in the [soviet] areas of Hubei-Henan-Anhui, West Hunan-Hubei, Northeast
Jiangxi, and Hunan-Hubei-Jiangxi. In particular, because the Red Army of the
Central Soviet Area has victoriously expanded toward the north, the Guomindang warlords, under severe prodding from the imperialists, are devoting all
their energies to launching a massive attack against the Central Soviet Area, as
well as intensifying their offense against the Northeast Jiangxi, Hunan-Hubei-
Jiangxi, and West Henan soviet areas. Because of the victories of the revolution,
the reactionary ruling class is attempting to use all its might to wage a final
struggle. It is a critical moment in the decisive battle between revolution and
counterrevolution.

This class war is more intense and critical than any previous war. It requires
mobilizing all the workers, peasants, and working masses, and arming them
quickly to strengthen the Red Army. This requires the use of all forces, all
economic resources, and all sacrifices to prepare for war to smash the enemy's
massive attack. We must, through victory in this war, gain such key cities as
Ji['an], Gan[zhou], Fu[zhou], and Nan[chang], so as to win victory first in
Jiangxi and several neighboring provinces.

In order to lead the worker and peasant masses, and armed organizations
throughout the country, to smash thoroughly the massive attack against the Central Soviet Area launched by the imperialist Guomindang, the Central Government is calling for an emergency general mobilization for war, especially of all
units of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army and all the workers, peasants, and
toiling masses, in response to the nationwide Fourth Encirclement Campaign.
The most aggressive and swiftest action must be taken, and the most extensive
and adequate war mobilization must be made to launch a firm counterattack and

safeguard the complete victory of this war. Therefore, governments at all levels,
all Red Army units, and all military districts must resolutely and quickly carry
out the following emergency mobilization measures:
1. Conduct an emergency mobilization of all workers, peasants, and toiling masses. Display the most vigorous revolutionary enthusiasm and concrete
action in struggling hard for victory in the war. To this end, governments at
all levels must immediately conduct effective political mobilization of the
worker and peasant masses in the entire soviet areas, so that every worker
and peasant may understand the significance of this war in terms of his own
future, understand the key role of the soviets in the victory of the whole
country, and be aware of the increase of the revolutionary forces in the whole
country and the hopeless struggles of the counterrevolution. The workers'
and peasants' enthusiasm for war and class resolve must be fostered, and they
must be encouraged to prepare actively for and to participate in all the concrete tasks in the war at the front and in the rear, and to go and fight to smash
the enemy's massive attack. This is the basic condition for our victory in the
class war. Consequently:
a. All staff of provincial soviet governments must immediately go down to
the grassroots levels to convene meetings, particularly municipal and township congresses and voters' meetings, and to conduct political mobilization,
so that every staff member, every worker, and every peasant may understand
the significance of this war, so that all of them will be mobilized to participate in all the mobilization efforts of this war.
b. The supreme military commands of the Red Army units must call
meetings of soldiers and officers according to their own conditions and conduct the general mobilization of all fighters.
c. Military districts and military departments at all levels must individually
hold meetings for members of local armed forces, such as the Red Guards,
guerrilla forces, and Young Pioneers.
d. Under this general mobilization order, all mass organizations must individually call meetings of their members and make speeches to arouse them.
2. In accordance with the orientation laid down, all Red Army units must
launch the most vigorous and swift offensive actions, first smashing the enemy's
attacks, using our victorious attacks to shatter the enemy's massive offensive, in
order to seize key cities, and win victory first in Jiangxi. In particular, the Red
Army in the entire country should act jointly and in coordination.
3. To expand the Red Army vigorously is to increase the main force of the
revolutionary war. This is one of the principal conditions for smashing the
enemy's massive attack. Governments at all levels must, in the month of Octo-ber, use their greatest strength and fastest speed to mobilize the largest possible
number of activist workers and peasants to strengthen the Red Army in terms of
both quantity and quality. They must firmly carry out Directive No. 15 of the

Central Executive Committee. At the same time, they must exceed the specified
number [of new recruits] by 100 percent. In the future, they should frequently
carry out the work of expanding the Red Army, continually supply the front with
large numbers [of recruits], and form regular reinforcement units for the Red
Army. Governments at all levels are also ordered to mobilize and encourage the
soldiers on home leave to return to their own units in October, launching the
most extensive campaign among the masses for [soldiers to] return to their own
units.
4. Resolutely carry out Directive No. 15 and quickly mobilize all men between the ages of eighteen and forty throughout the soviet areas to join the Red
Guards voluntarily. Every one of them must prepare a weapon of his own;
increase the production of homemade rifles, guns, and spears; and store up
sufficient ammunition (similarly, extensive Young Pioneers units must be
formed). They are to be formed into units according to specified establishment
criteria. This task must be completed before the holiday of the October Revolution. In particular, political education and military combat training must be intensified. Governments at all levels, all military districts and departments must take
specific responsibility for the execution of this task, so that the Red Guards may
indeed be capable of defending our territory, supporting the Red Army in its
actions, and striking at and destroying the enemy that is attacking us. Model
battalions and model units of the Young Pioneers must be kept ready for transfer
in order to be able to concentrate for combat.
5. Organize strong and effective guerrilla detachments. Existing guerrilla
units in various areas must be subject to a round of strict examination, the
undesirable elements in these units should be purged immediately, and the leadership of the guerrilla detachments strengthened and replaced. Every guerrilla
detachment must be rotated for a one-week training session in October in order
to enhance political education and military training and enable every member of
the guerrilla detachment to understand his responsibility and task. Every xian
must have at least one or two extremely effective guerrilla detachments to develop the most extensive guerrilla warfare in nearby White areas and the
enemy's rear, as well as to launch mass struggles, expand the soviet areas, and
become the armed organizers and propagandists of the soviets, turning themselves into one of the most important forces of the revolutionary war by pinning
down and striking at the enemy and by supporting the Red Army in combat. All
the serious problems that afflicted the guerrilla detachments in the past must be
eliminated. Every xian must finish the organization and rectification [of guerrilla
forces] in October and dispatch all of them on missions according to the directions and tasks set in the plans of the Committee on Labor and War.
6. In seeking to facilitate the destruction of the enemy and achieve victory
first in Jiangxi, an important precondition for winning victory in the war and
obtaining victory first in Jiangxi is the active development of surrounding soviet
areas, especially the ones in the north, east, and northeast. Governments at all

levels and all the local armed forces should immediately mobilize to develop the
soviet areas in these directions, to win over the majority of the workers and
peasants, and to create even more extensive soviet areas, which will surround
each central city and the cities the enemy uses as his bases, as well as establish
close links between Northeast Jiangxi and West Henan. This will enable us to
carry out work among the soldiers of the White army surrounding the soviet
areas in a more planned way; it will enable us to demoralize the enemy troops,
win over the revolutionary soldiers and masses, and establish the work in the vicinity
of central cities. Each xian and provincial government must assemble and transfer a
large number of cadres in October to establish governments in these new areas,
launch the land revolution, and conduct work in the White areas and among the
soldiers of the White army. At the same time, the governments should deepen the
class struggle in each border region, strengthen these regions, and expand outward.
7. Land taxes, commercial taxes, and rents must be levied and collected at
once to open up financial resources and adequately stockpile economic resources, food, and all military supplies for war. Preparations must be made for a
long war with the enemy, so that the Red Army and all workers and peasants will
not be subject to the enemy blockade or face supply difficulties. We should
continue to economize even more on all expenditures and food to enhance our
preparations for war. This is of decisive significance for victory or defeat in this
war.
8. Call on all workers and peasants to stock up on food and salt and reduce
the consumption of food; call on them to devote great efforts to growing miscellaneous cereals and vegetables in order to supply the Red Army during war. We
should cultivate the political enthusiasm of the workers and peasants of all the
soviet areas for the revolutionary war and their support for the Red Army, so that
they will make adequate preparations and provisions in terms of economic resources and food and remain ready to lend and donate them to the Red Army at
any time in order to win victory in the war.
9. We must resolutely wipe out the attacking enemy to defend our soviet
areas from destruction by the enemy. If the enemy wants to advance into the
soviet areas, we should firmly lead workers, peasants, and armed forces to attack
and destroy the enemy; moreover, we should cut off the enemy's food and
communication and subject him to harassment day and night. We should remove
and hide all supplies so that the enemy will not be able to survive within the
borders of the soviet areas even for a minute. All local governments should lead
local armed forces, workers, and peasants to make preparations actively and
utilize the experience gained from the previous three campaigns, so as to gain
more effective results and victories.
10. A Red martial law status of the highest degree is to be imposed in the
entire Soviet Area. The Red Guards are responsible for setting up all sentry
posts; this system is to be established within ten days to prevent enemy spies
from infiltrating into the Soviet Area. All travelers and their baggage are to be

checked thoroughly. All suspicious elements must be brought to the government
for exhaustive questioning. Governments at all levels must first conduct detailed
investigations and registration before they issue passes. No passes may be issued
carelessly. The previous method of stamping a seal on a person's hand is to be
abolished. All mass organizations must obtain passes from the government. Non-governmental military agencies are not allowed to issue passes. Passes for travel
to the White areas must be issued by district governments. A household registration check must be run at once in the entire Soviet Area. In particular, all suspicious
individuals in the cities must be subject to intense examination and monitoring.
Governments at all levels must have the participation and assistance of the labor
unions, the Young Pioneers, and all mass groups in carrying out this task.
11. Intensify the work of purging counterrevolutionaries. The State Security
Bureau is to be ordered to direct its branch bureaus to devise a careful plan to
implement this task. At the same time, the government will take harsh measures
to deal with all counterrevolutionary activities. In particular, the forces of landlords and the local gentry must be eliminated thoroughly and immediately in
Shicheng, Ningdu, Guangchang, Yihuang, Ninghua, Huichang, Xunwu, Yudu,
Anyuan, Xinfeng, and Longyan xian. We should direct workers and peasants to
keep a close watch on all landlords, rich peasants, and counterrevolutionary
suspects. In the war zones, these elements must be taken into custody. All counterrevolutionary factions must be purged; all counterrevolutionary activities must
be quashed in order to establish a stronger rear.
12. Actively improve key transportation lines to facilitate military transportation and movement. Establish strong and effective military supply depots. As for
the transportation duties of military supply depots in the future, local governments are responsible for the transportation and protection of supplies within 30
li on each side of the depots. The Red Guard units along these lines become
armed forces for the protection and guarding of the supplies in transit. As for
methods of transportation, the previous use of the names of different organizations is to be corrected. [Responsibility] is to be placed under a unified Red
Guard army. It is to be ordered that every member of the Red Guards must have
a weapon and a shoulder-pole; there must be one pair of stretchers for every five
of them. Thus, when war comes, all of them can use their weapons to attack the
enemy; when the front and military supply depots need teams of stretcher-bearers or transportation teams, all the Red Guards will be turned into transportation
teams and teams of stretcher-bearers. Only this kind of rapid mobilization can
meet the emergency needs of the war.
13. All governments must mobilize the masses to dismantle in October all the
earthworks built by the enemy inside the Soviet Area during the previous three
campaigns that have not been destroyed, as well as the walls surrounding cities
and towns.
14. During the war, governments at all levels must resolutely lead the masses
and their armed forces to fight the enemy mercilessly. If anyone is found to be

cowardly, runs away, or fails to lead the masses to fight resolutely, the offender
will be punished by revolutionary discipline. Officials of district and township
governments directly join the Red Guards and take over leadership positions. At
the provincial and xian levels, staff and officials of the agencies and groups at
the same level should be united and formed into one unit of the Red Guards; they
should often undergo military training and militarize all their daily activities.
This is to strengthen even more concretely the leadership of governments at all
levels over local armed forces.
The situation of the war is becoming more pressing. We must devote all our
energies to the mobilization of the workers and peasants of the entire Soviet
Area. We must use the fastest speed to make full preparations for war. We must
be ready to make all sacrifices to win victory in the war. We must subordinate all
other tasks to that of the war. This time, victory will certainly belong to us. It is
so ordered.

Chairman Mao Zedong
Vice-Chairmen Xiang Ying
Zhang Guotao
--- Notes

This document was first published in 𝘏𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘦 𝘡𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘩𝘶𝘢, no. 36, October 16, 1932. Our
source is 𝘔𝘢𝘰 𝘡𝘦𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘫𝘪, Vol. 3, pp. 143-48, where it is reproduced from this source.