Central Committee’s Transmittal of the Luoyang Tractor Factory’s Report on the Situation of the Suppression of Counterrevolutionaries Struggle, with Comments
(August 8, 1955)

To the Shanghai Bureau, all provincial and municipal Party committees, and Party committees of autonomous regions, with copies to all departments of the Central Committee and the Military Commission, and all Party committees and leading Party groups of central state organs:

In launching the struggle to suppress counterrevolutionaries among engineering and technical personnel, it is an extremely important matter both to eliminate all genuine counterrevolutionaries and deal with them appropriately, and to unite, educate, and elevate the over ninety percent of good people (including those who have committed certain errors). Among the experiences in this regard, there is now a report from the Party committee of the Luoyang Tractor Factory, which is hereby forwarded to you for reference and may be further transmitted to all relevant units. However, it should be pointed out: among the forty-eight engineers and technicians of Grade Four and above who participated in the confession and accusation campaign at this factory, thirteen were designated as key targets of struggle. This is a very high proportion. Assuming now that these thirteen individuals all have historical or current counterrevolutionary issues, we must pay attention to distinguishing the severity of their circumstances and reach different conclusions. The majority among them should be won over to remain in the factory, continuing to work under leadership control and mass supervision, and be reformed through work. Only for a very small number of individuals, for whom remaining in the factory would be extremely detrimental due to exceptionally serious circumstances, may alternative methods of handling be considered. All levels of Party committees are to pay serious attention to this point.

Central Committee
August 8, 1955

To be reviewed by Liu, Zhu, Chen, Zhou, Lu Dingyi, Luo Ruiqing. Shangkun to dispatch by telegram. Also, print and distribute (have all previously approved documents been processed? Our office has not received the printed copies).

[1] Liu refers to Liu Shaoqi. Zhu refers to Zhu De. Chen refers to Chen Yun, then Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council. Zhou refers to Zhou Enlai. Lu Dingyi, then Director of the Propaganda Department of the CPC Central Committee and head of the Central Ten-Person Group. Luo Ruiqing, then Director of the First Office of the State Council and Minister of Public Security, and deputy head of the Central Ten-Person Group.
[2] Shangkun, namely Yang Shangkun, then Deputy Secretary-General of the CPC Central Committee and Director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee.