Comments on a Report on the Situation of Suppressing Counterrevolutionaries
(March 18, 1951)

To all central bureaus, and forward to sub-bureaus, provincial party committees, party committees of large and medium-sized cities, district party committees, party committees of military regions, and public security organs:

The report[1] from the Fujian Provincial Public Security Department is very well written. It is analytical, substantive, correct in its orientation, and firm in its stance. It merits study and emulation by comrades in all localities. We hope that every province and municipality can produce reports of this kind.

Mao Zedong
March 18

[1] Refers to the report submitted by the Fujian Provincial Public Security Department on March 1, 1951, to the East China Public Security Department and copied to the Central Public Security Department, concerning the situation of suppressing counterrevolutionaries. The report pointed out that the work of suppressing counterrevolutionaries in Fujian Province had undergone a marked transformation since November of the previous year, but development was uneven at the time, with suppression in most areas being insufficient and some individual areas remaining inactive. The main reason was that the leadership’s thinking had not yet made the turn, and misgivings such as “fear of disorder” and “fear of rectifying deviations” persisted. After further mobilization at the Fifth Enlarged Meeting of the Provincial Party Committee and the adoption of a series of steps, the work of suppressing counterrevolutionaries in all localities proceeded very rapidly and yielded great results. The general steps were: First, discussions at the prefectural party committee level, full mobilization from top to bottom both inside and outside the Party, combined with focused and concrete inspections and supervision, to achieve clarity of thought and resolve issues of strategy and sources of materials. Second, in conjunction with central tasks such as land reform, mobilize the masses, adopt a method combining top-down and bottom-up approaches, carry out mass-based investigation and research work, integrate existing materials from public security departments, determine the targets to be arrested, convene peasant representative meetings to verify and supplement materials, and, upon examination and approval by designated organizations, under the unified leadership of the Party committee, organize the forces of the Party, government, military, and civilians to carry out region-wide mass arrests. Third, mobilize the masses to lodge accusations, pass sentences according to law through people’s courts or military tribunals, and have government organs organize public trial assemblies and mass meetings to announce and carry out executions.