**Comments and Revisions on the Draft Resolution of the Fourth National Public Security Conference\[1\]**

(September 1951)

**I**

Comrade Ruiqing\[2\]: I have read it and made minor revisions. This draft may be distributed to the attendees to solicit their opinions, and it will be discussed once at the Central Committee on Saturday.
Mao Zedong
3:00 a.m., September 6

**II**

Comrades Ruiqing and Peng Zhen\[3\]: I have added revisions. Please [both] consider them further and then distribute the draft to the attending comrades and all comrades of the Political Bureau. After the meeting presents new opinions and another round of revisions is made, it can be finalized.
Mao Zedong
September 11

**III**

Comrade Ruiqing: I have read it and made minor revisions. When printing, pay attention to proofreading to avoid errors. ......
Mao Zedong
September 15
(Published based on the manuscript.)

**IV**

The entire work of suppressing counterrevolutionaries must be conducted under the unified leadership of Party committees at all levels. All responsible comrades of public security organs and relevant organs involved in suppressing counterrevolutionaries must, as in the past, resolutely accept the Party committees’ leadership.

**V**

In view of the fact that, due to impurities in Party and government organizations in some counties, districts, and townships, phenomena of incomplete suppression or errors of indiscriminate arrests and killings have occurred in the movement to suppress counterrevolutionaries, it is therefore decided: In all areas where the suppression of counterrevolutionaries remains incomplete because of impurities within grassroots Party and government organs, or in areas where serious errors have been committed (such areas are a minority nationwide), before the Party and government organizations at the county, district, and township levels are properly rectified and their leadership capacity is strengthened, all arrests and executions must continue to be halted, except for offenders caught in the act. We must wait until the organizations at the county, district, and township levels have been properly rectified (including the removal of any possible counterrevolutionary elements from these organizations) and leadership capacity has been strengthened before resuming the work of suppressing counterrevolutionaries. Regarding such areas, patience is necessary; impatience must be avoided.

**VI**

In counties, districts, townships, and certain urban areas where the suppression of counterrevolutionaries has genuinely achieved thoroughness, the movement to suppress counterrevolutionaries should be concluded, and regular work in combating hidden counterrevolutionary elements should be initiated. The determination of such counties, districts, townships, or urban areas shall be the responsibility of provincial (regional) or municipal public security organs (subject to discussion and approval by the Party committee), and reported to the greater administrative area and the Central Ministry of Public Security for the record.

**VII**

We must strengthen the security, guard, and protection work for leaders, chiefs, key leading organs, and important democratic figures, carry out sharp struggles against the covert harmful activities of counterrevolutionaries, and constantly maintain full vigilance—this must receive great attention. It is assigned to public security organs and security organs at the levels of special commissioner’s offices, divisions, and above to collect cases of harmful activities by counterrevolutionaries from various localities (including both solved and unsolved cases), categorize them, sort them out, identify leads, study methods of handling, draw conclusions, and report to the Central Ministry of Public Security.

(Published based on Mao Zedong’s revised manuscript. Part (IV) has been included in Volume V of the *Selected Works of Mao Zedong*.)

**Notes**

\[1\] Parts I, II, and III of this text are comments by Mao Zedong. Parts IV through VII, printed in Song typeface, are text added or revised by Mao Zedong.
\[2\] Ruiqing, i.e., Luo Ruiqing, then Minister of Public Security of the Central People’s Government.
\[3\] Peng Zhen, then Alternate Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and Deputy Director of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee of the Government Administration Council.