POLICIES, MEASURES AND PERSPECTIVES FOR RESISTING THE JAPANESE INVASION

July 23, 1937

[On July 7, 1937, the Japanese imperialists staged the Lukouchiao Incident
in their attempt to annex the whole of China by armed force. The Chinese
people unanimously demanded war against Japan. Ten days elapsed before Chiang
Kai-shek tardily made a public statement at Lushan announcing armed resistance
to Japan. He did so under nation-wide popular pressure and as a result of
the serious blow the Japanese invasion had dealt to the interests both of
the British and U.S. imperialists in China and of the big landlords and the
big bourgeoisie whom Chiang Kai-shek directly represented. But at the same
time the Chiang Kai-shek government continued to parley with the Japanese
aggressors and even accepted the so-called peaceful settlements they concluded
with local authorities. It was not until August 13, 1937, when the Japanese
aggressors launched a major attack on Shanghai and thus made it impossible
for Chiang Kai-shek to maintain his rule in southeastern China, that he was
compelled to embark on armed resistance; but Chiang never ceased his clandestine
attempts to make peace with Japan right up to 1944. Throughout the War of
Resistance Chiang Kai-shek opposed all-out people's war in which the entire
people are mobilized, and pursued the reactionary policy of passively resisting
Japan but actively opposing the Communist Party and the people; thus his
actions completely violated his own Lushan statement that "once war breaks
out, every person, young or old, in the north or in the south, must take
up the responsibility of resisting Japan and defending our homeland". The
two policies, two sets of measures and two perspectives discussed by Comrade
Mao Tse-tung in this article reflect the struggle between the line of the
Communist Party and Chiang Kai-shek's line in the War of Resistance.]


I. TWO POLICIES


On July 8, the day after the Lukouchiao Incident,
[1] the Central Committee of the Communist Party
of China issued a manifesto to the whole nation calling for a war of resistance.
The manifesto reads in part:

Fellow-countrymen! Peiping and Tientsin are in peril! Northern China is in
peril! The Chinese nation is in peril! A war of resistance by the whole nation
is the only way out. We demand immediate and resolute resistance to the invading
Japanese armies and immediate preparations to meet all emergencies. From
top to bottom the whole nation must at once abandon any idea of being able
to live in submissive peace with the Japanese aggressors. Fellow-countrymen!
We should acclaim and support the heroic resistance of Feng Chih-an's troops.
We should acclaim and support the declaration of the local authorities of
northern China that they will defend the homeland to the death. We demand
that General Sung Cheh-yuan immediately mobilize the entire 29th
Army [2] and send it into action at the front.
Of the Central Government in Nanking we demand the following: Give effective
aid to the 29th Army. Immediately lift the ban on patriotic movements among
the masses and let the people give full play to their enthusiasm for armed
resistance. Immediately mobilize all the country's land, sea and air forces
for action. Immediately weed out all the hidden traitors and Japanese agents
in China and so consolidate our rear. We call on the people of the whole
country to throw all their strength behind the sacred war of self-defence
against Japan. Our slogans are: Armed defence of Peiping, Tientsin and northern
China ! Defend our homeland to the last drop of our blood ! Let the people
of the whole country, the government, and the armed forces unite and build
up the national united front as our solid Great Wall of resistance to Japanese
aggression! Let the Kuomintang and the Communist Party closely co-operate
and resist the new attacks of the Japanese aggressors! Drive the Japanese
aggressors out of China !

This is a declaration of policy.

On July 17, Mr. Chiang Kai-shek made a statement at Lushan. Setting out as
it did a policy of preparing for a war of resistance, the statement was the
Kuomintang's first correct declaration on foreign affairs for many years
and it has consequently been welcomed by all our countrymen as well as by
ourselves. The statement listed four conditions for the settlement of the
Lukouchiao Incident:

(1) Any settlement must not infringe China's sovereignty and territorial
integrity; (2) there must be no unlawful change in the administrative structure
of Hopei and Chahar Provinces; (3) there must be no dismissal and replacement,
at the demand of others, of local officials appointed by the Central Government;
(4) the 29th Army must not be confined to the area in which it is now stationed.

The concluding remarks of the statement read:

Concerning the Lukouchiao Incident, the government has decided on a policy
and a stand to which it will always adhere. We realize that when the whole
nation goes to war, sacrifices to the bitter end will be called for, and
we should not cherish the faintest hope of an easy way out. Once war breaks
out, every person, young or old, in the north or in the south, must take
up the responsibility of resisting Japan and defending our homeland.

This, too, is a declaration of policy.

Here we have two historic political declarations on the Lukouchiao Incident,
one by the Communist Party and the other by the Kuomintang. They have this
point in common: both stand for a resolute war of resistance and oppose
compromise and concessions.

This is one kind of policy for meeting Japanese invasion, the correct policy.

But there is the possibility of the adoption of another kind of policy. In
recent months the traitors and the pro-Japanese elements in Peiping and Tientsin
have been very active, they have been trying to get the local authorities
to acquiesce in Japan's demands, they have been undermining the policy of
resolute armed resistance and advocating compromise and concessions. These
are extremely dangerous signs.

The policy of compromise and concessions is the diametrical opposite of the
policy of resolute armed resistance. If it is not speedily reversed, Peiping,
Tientsin and the whole of northern China will fall into the hands of the
enemy, and the entire nation will be seriously imperilled. Everyone must
be on the alert.

Patriotic officers and men of the 29th Army, unite! Oppose compromise and
concessions and conduct resolute armed resistance!

Fellow patriots of Peiping, Tientsin and northern China, unite! Oppose compromise
and concessions and support resolute armed resistance!

Fellow patriots throughout the country, unite! Oppose compromise and concessions
and support resolute armed resistance!

Mr. Chiang Kai-shek and all patriotic members of the Kuomintang! We hope
that you will firmly adhere to your policy, fulfil your promises, oppose
compromise and concessions, conduct resolute armed resistance, and thus answer
the outrages of the enemy with deeds.

Let all the armed forces in the country, including the Red Army, support
Mr. Chiang Kai-shek's declaration, oppose compromise and concessions and
conduct resolute armed resistance!

We Communists are whole-heartedly and faithfully carrying out our own manifesto,
and at the same time we resolutely support Mr. Chiang Kai-shek's declaration;
together with the members of the Kuomintang and all our fellow-countrymen,
we are ready to defend the homeland to the last drop of our blood; we oppose
any hesitation, vacillation, compromise or concessions, and will conduct
resolute armed resistance.


II. TWO SETS OF MEASURES

To achieve its purpose the policy of resolute armed resistance calls for
a whole set of measures.

What are they? The principal ones are the following:

1. Mobilize all the armed forces of the whole country. Mobilize
our standing armed forces of well over two million men, including the land,
sea and air forces, the Central Army, the local troops and the Red Army,
and immediately send the main forces to the national defence lines, while
keeping some forces in the rear to maintain order. Entrust the command on
the various fronts to generals loyal to the national interests. Call a national
defence conference to decide on strategy and to achieve unity of purpose
in military operations. Overhaul the political work in the army in order
to achieve unity between officers and men and between the army and the people.
Establish the principle that guerrilla warfare should carry the responsibility
for one aspect of the strategic task, and ensure proper co-ordination between
guerrilla and regular warfare. Weed out traitors from the army. Call up an
adequate number of reserves and train them for service at the front. Adequately
replenish the equipment and supplies of the armed forces. Military plans
on these lines must be made, in keeping with the general policy of resolute
armed resistance. China's troops are far from few, but unless these plans
are executed, they will not be able to defeat the enemy. However, if the
political and material factors are combined, our armed forces will become
unmatched in East Asia.

2. Mobilize the whole people. Lift the ban on patriotic movements,
release political prisoners, annul the "Emergency Decree for Dealing with
Actions Endangering the Republic" [3] and the "Press
Censorship Regulations", [4] grant legal status
to existing patriotic organizations, extend these organizations among the
workers, peasants, businessmen and intellectuals, arm the people for self-defence
and for operations in support of the army. In a word, give the people freedom
to express their patriotism. By their combined strength the people and the
army will deal a death-blow to Japanese imperialism. Beyond doubt, there
can be no victory in a national war without reliance on the great masses
of the people. Let us take warning from the fall of Abyssinia.
[5] No one who is sincere about waging a resolute
war of resistance can afford to ignore this point.

3. Reform the government apparatus. Bring representatives of all
political parties and groups and public leaders into the government for joint
management of the affairs of the state and weed out the hidden pro-Japanese
elements and traitors in the government, so that the government can become
one with the people. Resistance to Japan is a gigantic task which cannot
be performed by a few individuals alone. If they insist on keeping it in
their own hands, they will only bungle it. If the government is to be a real
government of national defence, it must rely on the people and practice
democratic centralism. It must be at once democratic and centralized; it
is this kind of government which is the most powerful. The national assembly
must be truly representative of the people; it must be the supreme organ
of authority, determine the major policies of the state and decide on the
policies and plans for resisting Japan and saving the nation.

4. Adopt an anti-Japanese foreign policy. Accord the Japanese
imperialists no advantages or facilities, but on the contrary confiscate
their property, repudiate their loans, weed out their lackeys and expel their
spies. Immediately conclude a military and political alliance with the Soviet
Union and closely unite with the Soviet Union, the country which is most
reliable, most powerful and most capable of helping China to resist Japan.
Enlist the sympathy of Britain, the United States and France for our resistance
to Japan, and secure their help provided that it entails no loss of our territory
or our sovereign rights. We should rely mainly on our own strength to defeat
the Japanese aggressors; but foreign aid cannot be dispensed with, and an
isolationist policy will only play into the enemy's hands.

5. Proclaim a programme for improving the livelihood of the people and
immediately begin to put it into effect. Start with the following minimum
points: Abolish exorbitant taxes and miscellaneous levies, reduce land rent,
restrict usury, increase the workers' pay, improve the livelihood of the
soldiers and junior officers, improve the livelihood of office workers, and
provide relief for victims of natural calamities. Far from making a mess
of the country's finances as some people argue, these new measures will increase
the people's purchasing power and lead to thriving commercial and financial
conditions. They will add immeasurably to our strength for resisting Japan
and consolidate the government's foundations.

6. Institute education for national defence. Radically reform the
existing educational policy and system. All projects that are not urgent
and all measures that are not rational must be discarded. Newspapers, books
and magazines, films, plays, literature and art should all serve national
defence. Traitorous propaganda must be prohibited.

7. Adopt financial and economic policies for resisting Japan.
Financial policy should be based on the principle that those with money
should contribute money and that the property of the Japanese imperialists
and Chinese traitors should be confiscated, and economic policy should be
based on the principle of boycotting Japanese goods and promoting home
products--everything for the sake of resistance to Japan. Financial strain
is the product of wrong measures and can surely be overcome after the adoption
of new policies such as these, which serve the interests of the people. It
is sheer nonsense to say that a country with so vast a territory and so huge
a population is financially and economically helpless.

8. Unite the entire Chinese people, the government and the armed forces
to build up the national united front as our solid Great Wall. The
application of the policy of armed resistance and of the above measures depends
on this united front. Here the key is close cooperation between the Kuomintang
and the Communist Party. Let the government, the troops, all the political
parties and the whole people unite on the basis of such co-operation between
the two parties. The slogan "Unity in good faith to meet the national crisis"
must not be limited to fine words but must be demonstrated in fine deeds.
Unity must be genuine, deception will not do. There must be more large-mindedness
and a broader sweep in the conduct of state affairs. Petty niggling, mean
tricks, bureaucracy, and Ah Q-ism [6] are of no
use at all. They are of no avail against the enemy and simply ridiculous
if practiced on one's own countrymen. There are major and minor principles
in everything, and the minor principles are all subordinate to the major.
Our compatriots must think things over carefully in the light of the major
principles, for only then will they be able to orientate their own ideas
and actions properly. Today, anyone who has not begun to have some genuine
desire for unity ought to examine his conscience in the stillness of the
night and feel some shame, even if no one else censures him.

The set of measures for resolute armed resistance described above may be
called the Eight-Point Programme.

The policy of resolute armed resistance must be accompanied by this set of
measures, or otherwise victory will never be achieved and Japanese aggression
against China will never be ended, while China will be helpless against Japan
and hardly be able to escape the fate of Abyssinia.

Whoever is sincere about the policy of resolute armed resistance must put
this set of measures into practice. And the test of whether or not he is
sincere about resolute armed resistance is whether or not he accepts and
carries out this set of measures.

There is another set of measures which is contrary to this set in every respect.

Not the total mobilization of the armed forces, but their immobilization
or withdrawal.

Not freedom for the people, but oppression.

Not a government of national defence based on democratic centralism, but
an autocratic government of bureaucrats, compradors and big landlords.

Not a foreign policy of resisting Japan, but one of fawning on her.

Not the improvement of the people's livelihood, but continued extortions
so that they groan under their sufferings and are powerless to resist Japan.

Not education for national defence, but education for national subjugation.

Not financial and economic policies for resisting Japan, but the same old,
or even worse, financial and economic policies benefiting the enemy rather
than our own country.

Not building up the Anti-Japanese National United Front as our Great Wall,
but tearing it down, or talking glibly about unity while never doing anything
to advance it.

Measures stem from policy. If the policy is one of non-resistance, all measures
will reflect non-resistance; we have been taught this lesson over the last
six years. If the policy is one of resolute armed resistance, then
it is imperative to apply the appropriate measures-- the Eight-Point Programme.

III. TWO PERSPECTIVES

What are the perspectives? This is what everyone is anxious about. Pursue
the first policy and adopt the first set of measures, and the perspective
will definitely be the expulsion of Japanese imperialism and the attainment
of China's liberation. Can there still be any doubt about it? I think not.

Pursue the second policy and adopt the second set of measures, and the
perspective will definitely be the occupation of China by the Japanese
imperialists, with the Chinese people being turned into slaves and beasts
of burden. Can there still be any doubt about it? Again, I think not.

IV. CONCLUSION

It is imperative to carry out the first policy, to adopt the first set of
measures and to strive for the first perspective.

It is imperative to oppose the second policy, to reject the second set of
measures and to avert the second perspective.

Let all patriotic members of the Kuomintang and all members of the Communist
Party unite and steadfastly carry out the first policy, adopt the first set
of measures and strive for the first perspective; let them steadfastly oppose
the second policy, reject the second set of measures and avert the second
perspective.

Let all patriotic people, patriotic troops and patriotic parties and groups
unite as one and steadfastly carry out the first policy, adopt the first
set of measures and strive for the first perspective, let them steadfastly
oppose the second policy, reject the second set of measures and avert the
second perspective.

Long live the national revolutionary war!

Long live the liberation of the Chinese nation!

NOTES


1. On July 7, 1937, the Japanese invading forces attacked
the Chinese garrison at Lukouchiao, some ten kilometres southwest of Peking.
Under the influence of the ardent nation-wide anti-Japanese movement, the
Chinese troops put up resistance. This incident marked the beginning of the
Chinese people's heroic War of Resistance Against Japan which lasted for
eight years.

2. The 28th Army, which was originally part of the Kuomintang's
Northwestern Army under Feng Yu-hsiang, was then stationed in Hopei and Chahar
Provinces. Sung Cheh-yuan was its commander and Feng Chih-an one of its
divisional commanders.

3. The Kuomintang government promulgated the so-called
"Emergency Decree for Dealing with Actions Endangering the Republic" on January
31, 1931, using the trumped-up charge of "endangering the Republic" to persecute
and slaughter patriots and revolutionaries. This decree imposed extremely
brutal measures of persecution.

4. "Press Censorship Regulations" was another name for
the "General Measures for Press Censorship" issued by the Kuomintang government
in August 1934 to stifle the voice of the people. They laid down that "all
news copy must be submitted to censorship".

5. See "The Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party in the
Period of Resistance to Japan", Selected Works of Mao Tse-tung, Eng.
ed., Foreign Languages Press, Peking, 1965, Vol. I, p. ,67.

6. Ah Q is the leading character in The True Story
of Ah Q, the famous work by the great Chinese writer Lu Hsun. Ah Q typifies
all those who compensate themselves for their failures and setbacks in real
life by regarding them as moral or spiritual victories.


Transcription by the Maoist Documentation Project.