PROTEST AGAINST A CAPITAL CRIME
1 February 1941
[Text] The New Year Day open wire of Chu, P'eng, Yeh, and Hsiang protesting the ambush of the New 4th Army states: "When our South China
New 4th Army Headquarters and 10,000 troops, led by Yeh T'ing and others,
followed orders to move north, we suddenly were ambushed by 70,000
Kuomintang troops in the Mao-lin area south of Ching-hsien. Under waves
of siege, from beginning to end, we fought bloody battles for 7 days and
7 nights. The casualties were heavy, and we were out of ammunition and
provisions." Upon hearing such news, one is shocked and angry. This
act of violating their own military orders, disobeying the laws of the
state, destroying their own countrymen, and damaging the strength of the
nation is truly outrageous to the extreme!

After the New 4th Army was organized pursuant to orders, being new, it
was extremely ill equipped. Yet it marched to the front under orders
to resist a powerful enemy and established combat merits many times.
If rewarded according to their merits, these troops, which were successful in the resistance war, should have received reinforcements and should
have been expanded, so that they could become crack troops to resist
Japan, defend the nation, and protect China's Southeast. To one's surprise, not only were no reinforcements provided, but orders were issued
time and again forcing the troops to move north. For the sake of saving
the overall situation and averting national perdition, Commander in Chief
Chu took great pains to convince the southern Anhwei troops of the New
4th Army to move north. The troops followed the route designated by
Ku Chu-t'ung, commanding officer of the Third Military Region, and headed
toward southern Kiangsu in their move north. To their surprise, the so-called order to move proved to be a plot to exterminate the entire force.
As stated in the New Year wire of Chu, P'eng and others, "according to
information obtained from the encircling army in combat, such a plan to
exterminate the entire force was formulated long ago. Catching us
unprepared, they wanted to lure us into an ambush. The order from their
superiors contained such words as 'catching them all in one net3 capturing
Yeh and Hsiang alive'.... Meanwhile, they are preparing large-scale

arrests and killings as well as raids on the various offices of the 8th
Route Army in the entire country. In the Northwest they are building a
Great Wall of blockade; in Central China they are deploying over 20
divisions of regular troops for a large-scale attack." One can thus see
that the pro-Japanese conspirators and diehard anticommunist elements
are committing the heinous crimes of starting a civil war to sabotage
the resistance war and creating a split to destroy unity!

As chief and assistant chief of the General Staff of the Military Com-mission, Ho Ying-ch'in and Pai Ch'ung-hsi sent the wires of the 19th and
the 8th demanding that the headquarters and troops of the southern Anhwei
New 4th Army withdraw northward. Yet the order to move north was part of
the ambush plot! While the order forcing the New 4th Army to withdraw
was being issued, another order was given to attack the troops which were
withdrawing as ordered. Given such contradictions, where is the solemnity
of orders? Where is the integrity of the chief of the General Staff?

While time and again issuing orders for the headquarters and the southern
Anhwei troops of the New 4th Army to withdraw northward, the Military
Commission and Ku Chu-t'ung of the Third Military Region designated
southern Kiangsu as the route of withdrawal. When the troops of the New
4th Army followed orders to proceed to southern Kiangsu, they were
ambushed by 70,000 Kuomintang troops! Given such vicious means, where
are the righteousness, integrity, and ethics of the Central Government
proclaimed by Ho and Pai?

At the time when the headquarters and the South China troops of the New
4th Army were enticed into an ambush, the military authorities, while
issuing the order to "catch them all in one net; capture Yeh and Hsiang
alive," made promises that the troops stationed along the way would not
interfere with the withdrawal. Callous and inhuman, they say one thing
but mean another. Where are the laws of the state? Where is the
integrity of the authorities?

Alas! Orders! Orders! Military discipline! Military discipline!
Endless crimes in the world are committed in thy names!

One can thus see that those who disobey orders are the very ones who
issue them; those who violate the laws are the very ones who formulate
them. Hereafter, the soldiers and civilians of the entire nation will
recognize even more clearly that those who proclaim vociferously the
solemnity of military orders and the sanctity of state laws are merely
using them as excuses to further their own selfish ends and damage the
nation and the people!

When Germany, Italy and Japan criticized Roosevelt for violating international law by rendering aid to the British, Roosevelt stated openly
in his message to the 77th Congress: "The international law proclaimed
by the dictators is a one-sided thing. It lacks the spirit of mutual

observance; it only serves as a tool of oppression." We will borrow his
words to present to China's dictators and conspirators, who respect and
admire Roosevelt most. In other words, "the military orders and state
laws proclaimed by the hypocrites are things created by them according
to their own wishes. They lack the spirit of mutual observance; they
are only the tools to oppress and destroy the dissenters."

Discrepancy in words and deeds; benefiting oneself at the expense of
others--these are the nature of the class represented by those people.
In regard to those without righteousness, integrity and ethics, one
actually should not blame them for not being righteous, honest or ethical. As stated in an ancient Chinese proverb, "what they say are
righteousness, integrity and ethics, but what they do are robbery and
prostitution." It is an apt portrayal of those people. Their words
and deeds, as precisely described by Lu Hsun, are "ethics contrary to
the conduct of the Chinese people!"

Nevertheless, what they do today does not concern only the issue of their
personal ethics and integrity but that of the destiny of the state and
the nation. Their conspiracy to replace unity with a split and their
crime to substitute a civil war for the resistance war are actually
great wrongs done by them to help the enemy and the puppet and damage
the republic! Their heinous crimes not only are intolerable to our
communist 8th Route and New 4th armies, but the majority of soldiers
and civilians in the entire nation who love truth and justice cannot
remain on the sidelines. We appeal to our military and civilian
countrymen of the entire nation and the just people of the whole world
to unite with us and

Struggle to punish the conspiratorial ringleaders!

Struggle for the withdrawal of the troops exterminating the communists
in Central China!

Struggle for the destruction of the Northwest anticommunist blockade!

Struggle for the cessation of the nationwide slaughter!

Struggle to avert the perdition of the Chinese nation!

We deeply believe: Righteousness will overcome wickedness! Light will
overcome darkness!

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

CHIEH-FANG CHOU-K'AN, No 124