Comments on the Plan for Suppressing Counterrevolutionaries and Screening Undesirable Elements[1]
(April 17, 1951)
[1]
This refers to the principles and methods for suppressing counterrevolutionaries and screening undesirable elements put forward in the report of April 13, 1951, by Xu Shiyou, Commander of the Shandong Military Area Command of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, and Political Commissar Xiang Ming, submitted to the Party Committee of the East China Military Area Command with copies to the General Political Department and the East China Bureau. The report points out: All counterrevolutionary elements must be severely suppressed. Counterrevolutionary elements against whom material has already been gathered should be immediately arrested and dealt with. In screening undesirable elements, the primary task is to dig out the hidden counterrevolutionary elements. Our demand is that absolutely not a single counterrevolutionary element be allowed to hide or infiltrate into our troops, but also that absolutely not a single good person be wronged. The report demands that in screening the six categories of personnel—various undesirable elements, hired, retained, and employed personnel, recruited young intellectuals, those from families that were struggled against and are dissatisfied with the land reform, those habitually engaged in corruption, degeneration, and violations of law and discipline, and those habitually backward in thinking and antagonistic to the organization—a clear distinction must be made between political problems, problems of class status, problems of social status, disciplinary problems, and ideological problems, and they must be treated and handled differently, and absolutely must not be conflated. Except for those who are definitely counterrevolutionary elements and must be arrested and dealt with, different methods such as purging, assembly for training, transfer for training, transfer away from vital positions, imposition of disciplinary sanctions, and education to win them over must be adopted according to different circumstances. Our demand is that absolutely not a single undesirable element who cannot be reformed be allowed to remain in or infiltrate into our troops, but also that absolutely not a single undesirable element who can still be reformed be casually cast aside. The report also points out that, in terms of methods, ideological work must be done well among leading cadres at and above the regimental Party committee level, so that they recognize the dangers of counterrevolutionary activities, distinguish the boundary between suppressing counterrevolutionary elements and screening undesirable elements, and grasp the principle of treating different targets differently. Moreover, education on the severe suppression of counterrevolutionary elements must be strengthened among cadres and in companies, to draw a clear line between the enemy and ourselves, raise class consciousness, and stand firm in class stance. In organizational execution, there must be unified leadership by the Party committee, personal responsibility taken by the leading officers, an organizational security committee in charge, the integration of the security department with the organization department and the military law department, the integration of the backbone elements with the broad masses, the integration of internal work methods with open work methods, and the integration of screening and handling with education.

To all major military area commands, for transmission to all provincial military area commands, and for notification to all departments directly under the Military Commission and all special arms commands[2]:
The Shandong Military Area Command has arranged the work of suppressing counterrevolutionaries very conscientiously, and the principles and methods it has stipulated are also very appropriate, which can serve as a reference for all military area commands.
[2]
This refers to the various special arms commands of the General Headquarters of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

Mao Zedong
April 17