Endorsement on the Report on Launching the Three-Antis Campaign
(February 4, 1952)
I agree with the views expressed in this report.[I] Distribute this report to all central bureaus and forward it to sub-bureaus and provincial, municipal, and district party committees for study.
Mao Zedong
February 4

[I] Refers to the report submitted by An Ziwen to Mao Zedong on January 29, 1952, concerning the launching of the Three-Antis Campaign in rural areas. Based on materials from a typical experiment conducted by the Tongxian Prefectural Party Committee of Hebei Province in Xianghe County, which integrated rural party rectification with the Three-Antis Campaign, the report points out that the phenomena of corruption and waste are widespread and quite serious in rural areas. Therefore, it is entirely necessary to launch a widespread and thorough campaign against corruption, waste, and bureaucracy in the countryside. The following points concerning the rural Three-Antis Campaign should be clearly stipulated:
(1) Rural party rectification should be integrated with the Three-Antis Campaign. On the foundation of the Three-Antis Campaign, education on the eight criteria for Party membership shall be conducted, along with the registration, review, and handling of Party members. Communist education shall also be strengthened to raise the ideological consciousness of every Party member, so that rural Party organizations and all Party members clearly understand the direction of rural economic development. (2) In order to lead such a major struggle, all cadres participating in leading rural party rectification must be individuals who have undergone the Three-Antis struggle. Those who have not undergone the Three-Antis Campaign must all be recalled to carry out the Three-Antis; those whose hands are not clean must earnestly conduct self-criticism and wash themselves clean; those whose ideological boundaries are unclear must be educated to clarify their ideological boundaries before being sent down again to lead party rectification. (3) The launching of the Three-Antis Campaign in rural areas must have strong leadership; otherwise, if it is unleashed comprehensively all at once and leadership strength is insufficient, it will inevitably repeat the mistake of "removing stumbling blocks" from 1948. Therefore, it must be carried out in a planned, gradual, and batch-by-batch manner, and priority must first be given to resolving the villages where the problems of corruption and waste are most serious.