Central Directive on the Issue of the Three-Thirds System of Government[1]

(May 31, 1948)

To the North China Bureau, the Northeast Bureau, the East China Bureau, the Northwest Bureau, the Central Plains Bureau, the Jin-Sui Sub-Bureau, the Hebei-Chahar-Rehe-Liaoning Sub-Bureau, and to inform all Front Committees:

The Central Committee’s directive of February 1 last year indicated that the Three-Thirds System should still be implemented, and that the opinion of abolishing the Three-Thirds System is erroneous. However, during the period of over one year since the “February 1” directive of last year up to the present, many liberated areas, without obtaining the consent of the Central Committee, have arbitrarily revised this directive and have struck at non-Party personages of the Three-Thirds System politically and organizationally. Among these cases, except for a small number who deserved the punishment, the majority of the strikes were excessively “Left” erroneous actions. Moreover, on this major issue, the various localities neither sought instructions from the Central Committee beforehand, nor have they reported, or have rarely or even never reported, the situation to the Central Committee up to now. It is hereby specifically enjoined upon each Bureau, within half a month to one month after receiving this telegram, to compile a comprehensive list of well-known non-Party personages at the three levels of the local prefectural Party committee, the district Party committee, and the Central Bureau or Sub-Bureau, noting their resumes, current status, and our Party’s opinions on their treatment, and to telegraph this to the Central Committee. Simultaneously with the investigation report on this list, each Central Bureau, Central Sub-Bureau, and Work Committee (such as the Central China Work Committee) shall be responsible for making a summary report to the Central Committee on the issue of the United Front, the Three-Thirds System, and non-Party personages. This is of the utmost importance.

The Central Committee

Chenshi

[1] This was a telegram drafted by Mao Zedong for the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, addressed to the North China Bureau and others.