Critique on the Report on the Three-Antis Situation
(January 15, 1952)

To the major military regions, the Chinese People's Volunteers, to be forwarded to military regions at all levels and all armies, and to be notified to all central bureaus:

I have read the report of the Party Committee of the East China Military Region dated January 13 [1], and am greatly pleased. The orientation is correct and the momentum is very strong. It is hoped that the entire army will follow suit. Use this as the standard to examine the reports of all subordinate units. In all cases where reports are perfunctory and evasive, their leaders are either bureaucratic elements or embezzlement elements. Such reports should immediately be subjected to criticism. The East China Military Region's Three-Antis bulletins are very good. I have already read four issues. It is hoped that some will be sent to the Central-South and North China regions for their reference.

Mao Zedong
January 15

[1] Refers to the briefing by the Party Committee of the East China Military Region of the CPC on January 13, 1952, regarding the situation and experience of the Three-Antis campaign among the Nanjing troops, addressed to Party committees at all levels, heads of all units, and reported to Mao Zedong, the General Political Department of the Military Commission, and the East China Bureau. The briefing introduced the situation and specific experience of the Nanjing troops in studying the Beijing Three-Antis experience forwarded by the Central Committee, adopting methods such as setting deadlines for initiating confessions and exposures, naming and criticizing, and even suspending certain leading cadres from their posts for investigation, to advance the Three-Antis movement. These experiences are: First, combine leadership with the masses. Leading cadres should conduct self-criticism and personally go among the masses to propagandize and agitate, organizing activists to speak out. Second, guard against and correct bureaucratic elements using meeting discipline, speaking order, and respect for leadership as pretexts to suppress democracy, preventing embezzlement and waste elements from seizing the opportunity to slip through the net. Third, regarding those who actively speak out, regardless of their motives, allow them to speak. Fourth, do not be in a hurry to distinguish between embezzlement and waste. Fifth, in the early stages of the movement, it is necessary to focus on using methods such as removal from office for investigation, suspension from office for review, and even arrest several times.