CCP Central Military Commission’s Endorsement on Comrade Chen Yi’s Telegram Concerning the East China Military Region’s Campaign Against Bureaucratism (February 13, 1953) To Comrade Chen Yi and the Party Committee of the East China Military Region; also to be forwarded to all Major Military Regions, the Korean People’s Volunteer Army Headquarters, and all departments of the CMC:

(1) We have received Comrade Chen Yi’s telegram of February 11 addressed to Comrade Tang Liang. We concur with these views.  (2) All Major Military Regions and the various departments of the CMC are hereby instructed to immediately give close attention to the issue of combating bureaucratism. The approach should be to regularly and continuously dispatch authoritative leading cadres to conduct on-site inspections of work, to launch criticism and struggle against cadres exhibiting serious bureaucratic tendencies or engaging in violations of law and discipline, and to mete out punishment to the most egregious cases. It is requested that this matter be discussed and appropriate arrangements made.

Issued by the CCP Central Military Commission on February 13, based on Mao Zedong’s handwritten draft.

Notes  [1] Chen Yi was at the time Commander of the East China Military Region of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

[2] Refers to Chen Yi’s telegram of February 11, 1953, conveying his views on launching a campaign against bureaucratism within the East China Military Region, addressed to Tang Liang, Director of the Political Department of the East China Military Region, with copy to Mao Zedong, the CPC Central Committee, and the General Political Department. The telegram endorsed the work plan for February, March, and April as set forth by the Military Region Party Committee, while pointing out that scheduling the anti-bureaucracy campaign specifically for March and April was inappropriate. Separating the fight against bureaucratism from the central tasks of the organization and conducting it in isolation would fail to achieve the goal of getting down to earth and addressing practical problems. At present, vigorous efforts should indeed be made to combat bureaucratism and other violations of law and discipline. If the Military Region Party Committee can thoroughly inspect three or four departments each month and deliver a decisive blow against bureaucratism, this will help advance the overall work, without requiring a complete halt to all other activities in order to undertake a special “three-anti” campaign.