NEW YEAR MESSAGE
1 January 1947

[Text] In 1946 the bright side of the postwar world waged a successful
struggle against its dark side, and the bright side of postwar China also
waged a successful struggle against its dark side. A large-scale people's
movement for peace, democracy, and freedom has developed in both the
postwar world and postwar China. This movement will inevitably march
toward victory, and no force can resist it. Nevertheless, the reactionaries
will always attempt to block it. The task of the whole world and all of
China is to rally all forces and smash the resistance of the reactionaries.
In 1947 the world united front of the people of all nations in the world,
including China, against America's policy of aggression will develop
rapidly, while the movement of the Chinese people for democracy and
freedom will gain greater victories than in 1946. As a result, changes
will occur in the situation in China which are favorable to the resumption
of peace and the independence of the nation.

Even during the resistance war period our Communist Party members strove
for the postwar cooperation of all the parties and factions. However, we
also issued a warning: "The major ruling group of the Kuomintang, under
the camouflage of the 'National Congress' and 'political solution,' is now
surreptitiously preparing for a civil war. If our countrymen do not pay
attention, expose its conspiracy, and block its preparations, they will
wake up one morning and hear the artillery fire of the civil war." After
the conclusion of the resistance war, together with the people of the
whole nation, we exhausted all our patience and efforts to stop the outbreak
and escalation of a civil war. Unfortunately, these efforts were destroyed
by the general attack launched by the reactionaries and the "National
Congress" controlled exclusively by the Kuomintang. However, the Chinese
people continue to seek peace through two kinds of effort--the arduous and
outstanding struggle of the people of all classes and strata in the
Liberated Areas against the reactionary attacks, and the ever-rising mass
movement of the people of all classes and strata in the areas under
Kuomintang control for democracy and freedom. This combined desire of the
Chinese people will definitely overpower that of any reactionary element,

thereby making possible sincere discussions for peace among all the
parties and factions and a genuine peaceful life throughout the nation.
Currently the Kuomintang authorities are not showing the least bit of
interest in peace. Instigated by the American Government, they are busily
adorning themselves with the divided "National Congress" and the dictatorial
"constitution" in order to "legalize" their war and American aid.
Nevertheless, as long as the people of the whole nation unite and persevere
in an indomitable struggle, the sunlight of freedom will, in the near
future, shine on the great land of our mother country, and an independent,
peaceful, and democratic new China will have a firm foundation.

。 CHIEH-FANG JIH-PAO, 1 January 1947

* CH'UN-CHUNG (Shanghai), Vol 14, No 2, 13 January 1947

* "Reference Materials on the History of the Chinese Communist Party,"
Vol 5