Central Instructions on Combating Bureaucratism, Commandism, and Violations of Law and Discipline (January 5, 1953) To all Central Bureaus and Sub-bureaus, with copy to the Party committees of provinces, municipalities directly under the central government, and autonomous regions, as well as to prefectural and county Party committees; also to all departments of the CPC Central Committee and to the Party groups of the various organs of the Central People’s Government:

The Central Committee has received the report dated November 17, 1952, from the Disciplinary Inspection Commission of the Shandong Sub-bureau, entitled “Opinions on Combating Bureaucratism, Commandism, and Violations of Law and Discipline” [1]. We now forward it to you (the original document contained 18,000 characters; it has been condensed to 6,000).

The Central Committee deems it highly commendable and entirely necessary that the Shandong Sub-bureau should have so comprehensively brought to light numerous egregious instances of misconduct by unscrupulous elements within the Party and government organizations—misdeeds that gravely harm the masses—and should have put forward concrete proposals for resolving these problems. This matter should urgently attract the attention of leading bodies at all levels. Moreover, this is not merely a Shandong issue; it is a nationwide one.

During the Three-Anti Campaign, our Party fundamentally addressed the twin problems of embezzlement and waste among many cadres at the four levels of the central government, the major administrative regions, the provinces and municipalities, and the prefectures. It also largely overcame that aspect of bureaucratism characterized by the estrangement between leaders and the staff of subordinate organs. However, there remains a failure to grasp the suffering of the people, to understand conditions at the grassroots—beyond the immediate vicinity of one’s own work unit—to recognize the widespread prevalence of commandism and violations of law and discipline among cadres at the county, district, and township levels; or, even when some awareness of such abuses does exist, to treat them with indifference, failing to arouse righteous indignation or to appreciate the gravity of the situation, and thus refraining from taking proactive measures to support good…