Telegrams from Mao Zedong and Zhu De to Lu Han〔1〕 Regarding the Uprising of the Nationalist Government Forces in Yunnan Province (December 11, 1949)  To Mr. Lu Han, Chairman of Kunming:  We have carefully read your favorable telegram〔2〕 and are greatly gratified. Yunnan’s declaration of secession from the reactionary Nationalist government and its allegiance to the Central People’s Government will undoubtedly be welcomed by the entire nation, as it will accelerate the progress of the Southwestern Liberation War.  At present, Commander Liu Bocheng and Political Commissar Deng Xiaoping of our Second Field Army have already entered Chongqing. In order to facilitate the concrete resolution of the Yunnan question, we earnestly request that you promptly establish direct communication with Chongqing, place yourself under the command of Generals Liu and Deng, and issue a general order instructing all units to strictly comply with the following provisions:  (1) Prepare to welcome the entry of the People’s Liberation Army into Yunnan and cooperate with our forces to annihilate any counterrevolutionary troops that dare to resist.  (2) Implement the proclamation issued by the People’s Liberation Army on April 21 of this year, as well as the four appeals made by Generals Liu and Deng on November 21 of this year, protecting all state property, maintaining local order, and awaiting handover.  (3) Arrest key counterrevolutionary elements and suppress counterrevolutionary activities.  (4) Protect revolutionary activities of the people and establish contact with the revolutionary armed forces of the Yunnan people.  Furthermore, in order formally to announce this uprising to Yunnan and to the whole nation, and to secure the understanding of all parties,

it would seem more appropriate to issue another telegram offering a further review of past actions, followed by our reply via telegraph, to be published only after mutual agreement.  With these remarks, we respectfully await your instructions.  Mao Zedong  Zhu De  December 11  Printed according to the original document preserved in the Central Archives.  Notes  [1] Lu Han, formerly Chairman of the Yunnan Provincial Government and Director of the Yunnan Pacification Office under the Nationalist regime, led his forces in an uprising in Kunming in December 1949.  [2] Refers to Lu Han’s telegram dated December 9, 1949, announcing Yunnan’s secession from the reactionary Nationalist government and its submission to the leadership of the Central People’s Government, addressed to Mao Zedong, Zhu De, and others. 1£¸