Propaganda Department Comments Forwarding the Northeast Bureau’s Directive on School Rectification Campaigns (September 9, 1950) To all Central Bureaus and Branches, with copies transmitted to major municipal and provincial propaganda departments: With regard to school rectification campaigns, the Northeast Bureau’s directive issued on September 3 [1] is entirely appropriate. Please forward it for reference to the relevant school party committees. Kindly pay close attention to whether any undesirable phenomena similar to those observed at Shenyang Agricultural College have occurred in your respective regions, and report back to the Central Committee accordingly. Issued by the Central Propaganda Department on September 9, based on Mao Zedong’s handwritten draft. Note [1]: Refers to a telegram sent by the Northeast Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on September 3, 1950, to provincial and municipal party committees and simultaneously reported to the Central Committee, detailing the rectification situation at Shenyang Agricultural College. The telegram noted that even under normal circumstances, there had long been a lack of unity among the college’s administrative leaders, between Party members and non-Party staff. During this rectification campaign, most leading Party members were away on external assignments and failed to initiate the process within the Party ranks and among the leadership itself. Instead, non-Party faculty and staff were encouraged to examine the work, resulting in a dynamic where the masses criticized the cadres and conflicts arose among the cadres themselves, further exacerbating divisions both between Party members and non-Party personnel and among the cadre group. Due to the absence of proper leadership, the majority of opinions expressed were confined to issues of personal conduct, without guiding the faculty and staff toward offering constructive feedback on the implementation of educational guidelines and Party policies regarding education. In light of this, the Northeast Bureau instructed that henceforth specialized schools should focus on 5£°
The rectification campaign in schools should pay attention to the following points: (1) Leadership must clearly understand that the primary objective of the school-wide rectification is to enable Party members and cadres to effectively unite all teachers and students, correctly implement educational policies, and run the school well. Therefore, the rectification should prioritize teaching principles and the Party’s policies governing school education, while also drawing lessons from past experiences. (2) The rectification should be limited to Party members and cadres holding administrative positions, primarily senior leaders. (3) During the rectification, leaders may solicit opinions from non-Party faculty and staff; when conditions are ripe, these individuals may be invited to participate in the inspection process. However, they should not undergo the same rigorous rectification as Party cadres, but rather receive ongoing education aimed at fostering greater unity. (4) Any behavior that deviates from principle—such as harboring personal grudges or engaging in factional struggles—must be strictly prevented and corrected during the rectification campaign.