Comments on the Report of the Hebei Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China Concerning Rural People’s Communes
(December 5, 1958)

Comrade Xiaoping[1]:

This document[2] may be printed and distributed for reference.

Mao Zedong
December 5

[1] Xiaoping, namely Deng Xiaoping, was then serving as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.
[2] Refers to the report submitted to the Central Committee by the Hebei Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China on November 28, 1958, concerning rural people’s communes. The report stated:
In September of this year, the rural areas of our province achieved the people’s communization. A total of 953 communes were established, and the number of peasant households joining the communes accounted for 99.95% of the total peasant households. Beginning in the latter half of September, with an abundant agricultural harvest already assured, we commenced the work of consolidating the people’s communes in three areas: reforming the distribution system of the people’s communes, organizing the collective life of the masses, and strengthening communist education among the masses.
(1) Concerning the distribution system in the rural people’s communes. It has been decided to universally implement a system of distribution combining half supply with half wages in the rural communes across the province. This new distribution system possesses greater superiority compared to the previous system of remuneration based on daily work records. It is currently being promoted by all communes in the province and is expected to be fully implemented by December of this year.
(2) Concerning the issue of the collective life of the masses. Statistics from late October show that the province had established over 235,000 mess halls, with 34.82 million people participating; 213,217 nurseries and 101,633 kindergartens, accommodating over 4.4 million children; and 13,599 happiness homes, housing nearly 100,000 elderly persons.
(3) Concerning the strengthening of communist ideological education among the masses. Specific arrangements were made in October, and efforts are now developing broadly and in depth.