OUR VIEWS ABOUT THE WORK OF THE POLITICAL COUNCIL IN THE PAST AND THE
CURRENT SITUATION

8 September 1939

[Text] Organized on the anniversary of the resistance war, the People's
Political Council has been in existence for over a year.

When accepting the invitation to participate in the Political Council,
we published "Our Views on the People's Political Council," pointing out:
"In the violent environment of the resistance war at present, the holding
of the People's Political Council clearly indicates an improvement of
China's political life toward the democratic system and progress of
China's parties and factions, races, classes and strata, and regions
toward unity. Though in its method of creation and the provisions of
functions and authorities the People's Political Council is not a plenipotentiary organ representing the people as can be desired, it does not,
for these reasons, lose its effect and significance--the effect of further uniting all strength in the nation to fight the resistance war and
save the nation and the significance of initiating the political life of
the nation toward true democracy. Therefore, besides continuing our
effort to promote a plenipotentiary people's representative organ by
general election, our Communist Party members must participate in the
work of the People's Political Council with the most positive, enthusiastic, and sincere attitude."

In the past year the People's Political Council has convened three times.
When we look at its work so far as a whole, its greatest accomplishment
is that it has been able to truly reflect the desire of the greatest
majority of the entire nation regarding China's most urgent and crucial
political issues today--persevering in the national self-defense
resistance war, striving for final victory, and attacking the tendency
toward compromises and the criminal activities. At its first general
meeting the People's Political Council solemnly declared: "This Council,
on behalf of all the citizens of the nation, solemnly declares: The
nation of China must, with an indomitable determination, mobilize all
materiel and manpower for self-defense and humanity and wage a long-term

resistance war against the vicious aggressors until the day of final
victory." At the second general meeting it adopted a resolution "to
support the government policy to wage a total war, persevere in the war,
and strive for the initiative announced by Chairman Chiang" and appealed
to the people of the entire nation to "persevere in the resistance war,
never to capitulate, and to defend the nation together, in order to
complete the tasks of fighting the war and building the nation." The
third general meeting resolved that "the already decided policy of
fighting the resistance war must be pursued to the final end" and appealed
to the people "to build their confidence, match their steps, and, with
one heart and one mind, from beginning to end, recover our territorial
sovereignty and administrative integrity and complete the great cause of
the resistance war and national construction." Besides the above, in
regard to the various concrete issues of the resistance war and national
construction, the members of the Political Council, during the three general meetings, submitted over 300 bills. Though such bills included both
essential and nonessential matters, the members racked their brains, trying to benefit the resistance war and national construction. What is
regrettable is that the government has not definitely and effectively
implemented the greater part of the resolutions of the Political Council,
thus reducing its efficiency and failing to satisfy the enthusiastic
hopes of the people.

In regard to the work of our Communist Party members in the Political
Council in the past year, based on the standpoint we declared on 5 July
last year, we have followed the directive of the Chinese Communist
Central for "a clear political standpoint and sincere spirit of unity"
and, under the instructions and encouragement of the progressives in the
nation, struggled alongside our colleagues in the Political Council to
realize the will and demands of the Chinese people. We firmly believe
that the greatest desire, will, and demand of the people today are to
strive for the victory of the resistance war and to consolidate and
expand national unity and progress, which are indispensable to the victory of the resistance war. Therefore, in the past three Political
Council meetings we proposed time and again "the bill to support the
government in introducing the resistance war and national construction
program," "the bill to support Chairman Chiang and the National Govern-ment in intensifying national unity and persevering in a sustained
resistance war for final victory," and "the bill to support Chairman
Chiang, severely reprimand the household guard for their declaration,
and use it as the only criterion in the resistance war policy hereafter." With the support of all the members, the bills were passed.
In addition, on the various fundamental issues relevant to the resistance
war, such as troop building, conscription, developing guerrilla warfare
behind enemy lines, introducing democracy, and protecting the rights of
the people, we expressed our views in special bills. In the work of the
past year we have firmly adhered to our standpoint: "Participating in
the People's Political Council on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party,
we sincerely desire to strive together hand in hand with the Political

Council members of the Kuomintang, other parties and factions, and those
without party or factional affiliations, in order to discuss and decide,
in friendship and harmony, the concrete methods and means of enforcement
beneficial to the resistance war and national construction."

Meanwhile, we firmly exposed and ruthlessly attacked all the fallacies
advocating surrender and detrimental to the resistance war. Though
expressed in a subtle form, the treacherous theories of renegade Wang
and his cohort Li Sheng-wu at the first and second general meetings
encountered our attack and rebuttal and those of the majority of the
Political Council members. Though embarrassed for lack of much accomplishment, we believe that, in our work in the Political Council in the past
year, we have carefully adhered to the fundamental standpoint of unity
and perseverance in the resistance war and followed the people's will
and desire, without the least bit of transgression.

Now the government has issued an order to extend the term of the Politi-cal Council members for 1 year. We, as Political Council members, wish
to present our views on the current situation and on the policy of how
to strive for victory in the resistance war hereafter to our colleagues
on the Political Council and the people of the entire nation.

In regard to the characteristics of the current situation of the
resistance war, on the one hand, the enemy, after 2 years of aggressive
war, finds itself in ever greater difficulties, while our prospect of
victory becomes ever more apparent; on the other hand, the Japanese
bandits, instead of changing their policy to destroy China, have become
more unscrupulous, cruel, and vicious in following their predetermined
policy against China and more cunning in implementing their policy of
controlling the Chinese with the Chinese and supporting the war with
war. In military affairs, they have suspended a great frontal offensive
and concentrated on wiping out the guerrillas behind their lines in
order to lull our determination in the resistance war while consolidating
their foundation in the occupied areas. In politics, they vigorously
support and utilize renegade Wang, vociferously advocate their fallacies
against Chiang, against the communists, and for surrender, intensify
their activities to create a counterfeit party, a counterfeit government,
and a counterfeit army, instigate renegade Wang's followers and other
elements with two minds to provoke, alienate, and promote anti-Chiang
and anticommunist activities in the resistance war stronghold, and
attempt to create a situation which will force China to surrender. In
economics, they resort to plunder, extraction, blockade, and exploitation in order to implement their vicious scheme of supporting the war
with war and slaughtering the Chinese people with Chinese resources.
Meanwhile, in the resistance war stronghold, there are some who do not
have a correct understanding of the current situation, feeling either
that the enemy bandits have eased up on their policy to destroy China,
or that the Sino-Japanese issue can be solved by some kind of international conference. Thus, they abandon their trust in

self-revitalization and fail to perform the practical work to prepare
for a counteroffensive. Some even ignore the danger of national perdition, but concentrate their energy on domestic issues, vigorously
encouraging the conspiracies against the communists and against the
the unity between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, constantly
attacking all the progressive forces, and ruthlessly oppressing the able
young people. It is the pain of boiling the beans with their own vines,
and it is the time when brothers, fighting within their own walls, defend
themselves against outsiders together. Their influence has not only
shaken the confidence of all our countrymen in the nation in the victory
of the resistance war, but also lowered the sympathy for the nation of
China in international public opinion. Meanwhile, such difficulties as
military service and currency devaluation have made some people feel
helpless over the resistance war. All these have made the crisis of the
nation more intensified and aggravated. Simultaneously, the development
of the international situation has produced tremendous changes in the
resistance war environment of China. With the evaporation of the anticommunist axis resulting from the signing of the nonaggression pact
between the Soviet Union and Germany, the Japanese bandits have become
more isolated diplomatically and shaken in internal affairs. This point
should be favorable to China's resistance war situation. Meanwhile, with
the European war resulting from Fascist Germany's invasion of Poland,
the Japanese bandits will utilize the tense situation in Europe to
intensify their policy to destroy China, and the compromise faction in
England will try even harder to achieve a compromise between England and
Japan by sacrificing China. All these factors will increase our difficulties in the resistance war. Thus, the environment of China's resistance
war here and abroad is in a new and rapidly changing period. In this new
international and domestic situation, the solemn task of the people of
the entire nation at present is to clearly recognize the various characteristics of the new international and domestic situation and their possible tendencies, adhere to the policy of persevering in the resistance
war, resist the danger of compromise, strive for a greater national unity,
oppose all kinds of conspiracies to create a split, pursue national
progress, and oppose all reactionary and regressive phenomena. Mean-while, we must seize upon and utilize every change and factor in the
international situation favorable to us in order to increase our foreign
aid, overcome dangers, break down all difficulties, reinforce our
strengths, and prepare for a counteroffensive.

To overcome the current difficulties and dangers and to conscientiously
prepare the strengths for a counteroffensive, we feel that we must devote
our efforts to the following aspects:

A. In Politics

1. Mobilize all the strengths in the nation against compromise and surrender; expand the anti-Wang movement; purge the Wang remnants and all the
compromise and surrender elements in the resistance war stronghold.

2. Reinforce the wartime government; unite military and political leadership; recruit the talents of all parties and factions; raise the efficiency of the wartime administrative structure.

3. Introduce wartime democracy; severely punish those guilty of illegal
oppressive activities against the people and the young; truly protect the
people's rights to speak, publish, meet and associate, and to arm themselves in the resistance war.

4. Conscientiously punish and dismiss the corrupt officials; introduce
local self-government.

5. Form arbitration organs in all areas to handle the disputes between
labor and capital and between tenants and landowners; make suitable
improvements in the life of the impoverished workers and peasants in
order to increase the resistance war fervor of the masses and facilitate
military service and mobilization.

B. In Military Affairs

1. Develop guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines: To reach the stage at
which the enemy rear is turned into the front and many minor victories
accumulate into a major one, the following steps are necessary:

(1) Formulate and introduce administrative programs in guerrilla bases
according to the program and principle of the resistance war and national
construction and special local conditions.

(2) Unify the military and political powers of the guerrilla bases
under the direction of the local main force units with outstanding war
achievements and rich experiences.

(3) The Central Government must replenish the resistance war units of
the guerrilla bases with the necessary arms and supply the required
economic aid.

(4) Send units with the determination and ability to persevere, firm
political work, and good discipline behind the enemy lines to expand
guerrilla warfare.

(5) All personnel and units sent behind enemy lines must stress unity
against the enemy and sincerely implement the policy of the Anti-Japanese
National United Front; they must not create internal frictions to damage
themselves and help the enemy.

(6) The personnel and units sent behind the enemy lines must follow the
policy of democracy and organize a resistance war political power truly
elected by the people and approved by the superior-level government. At
the same time, they must enforce the policy to improve the people's life

in order to rally the broad strata of people against the counterfeit
political power, disintegrate the counterfeit army, and prevent our
manpower and materiel from falling into enemy hands.

2. Cultivate a new national defense army: To persevere in the
resistance war, especially to prepare for a true counteroffensive when
the conditions are favorable and to expel the enemy bandits, a new
national defense army must be cultivated as the nucleus in the future
counteroffensive. Therefore, the following steps are necessary:

(1) Select from the front line X X divisions which have a history of
combat merits, without distinction as to party or faction or boundary
line, as the foundation of army building.

(2) Provide for the unified organization of national defense divisions,

(3) The cadres of the national defense divisions must follow the
existing systems of the units selected, receive modern military training and firm political education, and be able to preserve the superior
traditions of the particular units.

(4) The equipment, treatment, and supplies of the national defense
divisions must be equal, but relatively better than those of the
ordinary units.

(5) Specific periods and plans for the training of the national defense
divisions must be decided on, and meritorious and able high-level officers must be in charge of the training, which will be carried out in
different areas and performed in concentrated groups.

(6) Establish national defense industries, increase purchasing from
outside, and plan to complete the modern equipping of X X national
defense divisions within 2 years.

C. In Economics

To destroy enemy construction and exploitation while realizing our production and thrift, the following steps are necessary:

1. Destroy the economic construction and material exploitation of
enemy-occupied areas, activate the people to boycott enemy goods, and
prohibit supplying the enemy with useful native products, such as
certain special military-need articles. The indispensable enemy goods
must be purchased under state control.

2. The state must subsidize and encourage private investment in order
to expand the industrial-agricultural cooperative movement; extensively
develop all types of practical industries; vigorously raise agricultural
production.

3. Vigorously promote the thrift movement of military and government
organs and private individuals.

D. In Finance

To firmly change the existing work style and thoroughly enforce the wartime fiscal policy, the following steps are necessary:

1. The issuance of legal tenders and the circulation of capital must be
suitably coordinated in order to avoid currency unbalance between the
coast and the interior.

2. Foreign exchange must be strictly and thoroughly controlled. The
People's Political Council must form a foreign exchange committee to
periodically inspect the Finance Ministry's approvals and uses of
foreign exchange in order to stop all malpractices.

3. Strictly inspect and prohibit private manipulation of currency and
disruption of the legal tender, especially the profiteering, speculation, and manipulation by those in official positions; severely punish
the violators.

4. Permit the issuance of a limited amount of local paper currency and
circulating mediums in war areas, especially in enemy-occupied provinces.

5. The gold bonds of the state must be sold by wide appeals to overseas
Chinese and domestic banking circles; they must be guaranteed with definite funds and the subscribers given the convenience of domestic investment.

6. In regard to the tax policy of the state, the progressive rates of
business, income, and inheritance taxes must be enforced according to
the environment and feasibility of the various areas; agricultural taxes
must be improved and harsh levies abolished.

7. The assets of traitors must be confiscated. In the case of landlords
who have fled to enemy areas, the state must, on their behalf, collect
the money or grain as a minimal amount, to be considered temporarily as
the direct receipts of the state.

8. The state budget, from the central to the local areas, must be
formulated anew, increasing the items related to the resistance war
according to the need, reducing wherever possible the unrelated items,
and deleting all items which can be deleted.

9. The compensation of state administrative personnel, especially of
high-level officials, must be uniformly reduced. It must be lower than
that of military officers at the same levels. Special expenses and
double salary must be eliminated. Commissions on government loans and
purchases must be abolished.

E. In Diplomacy

To isolate the Japanese bandits and increase foreign aid, the following
steps are necessary:

1. Conscientiously ally with all peoples and governments aiding and
sympathetic with our resistance war; strive to make them increase their
material and spiritual aid to us.

2. Firmly oppose the conspiracy of the government of any country to sacrifice China and compromise with the Japanese bandits; firmly adhere to
the policy of independence and self-determination in diplomacy.

3. Help the People's Political Council, the parties and factions, and
the mass organizations of all fields to send all types of delegations
to the various countries for extensive citizens' diplomatic activities
in order to increase the aid given us by democratic and peace forces.

F. In Party and Factional Cooperation

Reinforcing the sincere unity among all the resistance war parties and
factions, especially the friendly cooperation between the Kuomintang and
the Communist Party, is actually the fundamental assurance for implementing the above steps, overcoming the dangers of the current situation,
and defeating the Japanese bandits and renegade Wang. Therefore, the
following steps are necessary:

1. Protect the legitimate rights of all resist-Japan parties and factions by unequivocal decrees; conscientiously abolish all means of
restricting and controlling the activities of the so-called heretic
parties.

2. Strictly prohibit discriminatory and oppressive conduct against the
Communist Party and other resist-Japan parties and factions; strictly
prohibit damage to the employment and character of the people in the
fields of industry, agriculture, military affairs, education, and
commerce and of the young people on grounds of party affiliation or
ideological issues in order to create a unanimous and sincere unity
in the whole nation.

3. In all types of resistance war work, extensively accept the participation and the talents of all parties and factions; refrain from rejecting
talents useful to the state on grounds of their party or factional
affiliations or private opinions.

At this time, when the bandits are deep in our land, calamity is imminent,
and the world is undergoing rapid changes, persevering in the resistance
war to the bitter end, consolidating domestic unity, and striving for
national progress in order to increase the resistance war strength and

prepare for a counteroffensive against the enemy are the demands and
desires of the people of the entire country. We People's Political
Council members, as the people's representatives and emissaries,
respectfully make this joint declaration prior to the fourth general
meeting, with the hope that the people of the entire nation and our
Political Council colleagues will give us their instructions, encouragement, supervision, and criticisms and that our declaration will serve as
the direction of the common struggle of our colleagues inside and outside
the Council and of our countrymen throughout the nation.

Mao Tse-tung, Ch'en Shao-yu, Ch'in Pang-hsien, Lin Tsu-han, Wu Yu-chang,
Tung Pi-wu, Teng Yin-chao

8 September

o HSIN-HUA JIH-PAO, 9 September 1939

* CHIEH-FANG, No 86, 10 October 1939

* "Guide to the Anti-Japanese National United Front" (9), Chieh-fang
Press, 1940

* "Collection of Important Documents Since the War of Resistance,"
compiled by the Chinese Communist Central Secretariat, 1942

* "Reference Materials on the History of the Chinese Revolution," Vol 4,
China People's University, 1957

The text of these proposals was first published in the Chongqing edition of Xinhua ribao on
September 9, 1939. Our source is Mao Zedong ji, Vol. 7, pp. 17-26, which reproduces the
text from this version.
1. For the full text of this document, dated July 5, 1938, see the translation in Volume VI
of this edition.