Internal Communication [1] (March 15, 1959) Comrades First Secretaries of the Party Committees of All Provinces, Municipalities, and Autonomous Regions: I have been in Wuchang for five days now, reviewing materials from Hubei’s six-level cadre conference. At the same time, I have received reports from several provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions. Based on this, there is one issue I wish to discuss with you. The Henan document [2] has already been sent to you; it advocates using the production brigade as both the basic accounting unit and the distribution unit within the people’s commune. While in Zhengzhou, I also received the Hubei Provincial Party Committee’s March 8th regulations [3] regarding the management system of people’s communes and grain issues, which stipulate: “Firmly establish the original advanced commune—the present-day production team—as the basic accounting unit. Advanced communes that have already been divided into several production teams should be reconsolidated into a single basic accounting unit and must not be further subdivided. A small number of originally very small advanced communes with broadly similar economic conditions, which have already been combined into a single production team, may, if their cadres and members are willing, be designated as a single basic accounting unit after review by the commune party committee and approval by the county party committee.” Upon arriving in Wuchang, I immediately summoned Comrade Zhou Xiaozhou [4] and, together with Comrade Wang Renzhong [5], engaged in a discussion. I asked Zhou whether they favored the Henan approach or the Hubei approach. He replied that they supported the Henan method, namely designating the production brigade (administrative district) as the basic accounting unit, because in their region a single production brigade generally oversees only about six production teams. These six teams, in turn, were largely formed by dividing three original advanced communes—one commune split into two teams—and later still further subdividing those teams. Subsequently, I also received the Guangdong Provincial Party Committee’s report of March 11 [6], which proposed implementing the “Three Determinations and Five Delegations.” The first of the Three Determinations—determining the basic accounting unit—stipulates that it shall uniformly be based on the original advanced communes (there were twenty-three thousand such communes throughout Guangdong Province, averaging around 320 households per commune). Some of these correspond roughly to today’s production teams (or brigades), while others, having been split into two or three production teams during collectivization, may be immediately merged into a new team to serve as the basic accounting unit. If an advanced commune is excessively small, or if several communes exist within a single natural village, or even if they are located in different villages but their economic conditions are not markedly dissimilar, they may, with the consent of the masses, be consolidated to form a single basic accounting unit. Thus, Henan and Hunan both advocate using the production brigade (administrative district) as the basic accounting unit, whereas Hubei and Guangdong both favor the production team—the original advanced commune—as the fundamental unit. Which of these approaches is preferable? Or might both be pursued concurrently? According to Comrade Wang Renzhong, the Hubei conference has been debating precisely this question these past few days, with intense contention between the two factions. Generally speaking, county and commune party committees, as well as brigade (administrative district) leaders, tend to support the brigade-based model, while production team (original advanced commune) secretaries—indeed, the vast majority of them—advocate for the production team as the basic accounting unit. I believe this issue carries profound significance, directly affecting the interests of over thirty million grassroots cadres, including production team leaders and deputy leaders, as well as hundreds of millions of farmers. Should we adopt the Henan or Hunan approach, we must ensure genuine consent from the grassroots level. If they feel compelled, it would be better to opt for the production team—the original advanced commune—as the basic accounting unit, lest we become estranged from the masses. In the current juncture, such alienation would be highly perilous, potentially jeopardizing this year’s production goals. Although Henan has already made a decision, I nonetheless urge the provincial party committee to solicit the views of grassroots cadres at the ongoing four-level cadre conferences being held in various counties. If the cadres concur with the provincial directive, proceed accordingly; otherwise, consider revising the policy. The phrase “teams as the foundation” as recorded in the minutes of the Zhengzhou Conference refers specifically to production teams—the original advanced communes—not to production brigades (administrative districts). In short, we must act in accordance with the will of the masses. Only policies that align with their needs will prove viable; otherwise, they will ultimately fail. How best to proceed remains for your discretion. Mao Zedong March 15, 1959, Wuchang Printed from the original manuscript. Notes [1] This is a letter from Mao Zedong to the First Secretaries of the Party Committees of all provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions concerning the issue of the basic accounting unit within the people’s commune. The title was suggested by Mao Zedong himself. [2] Refers to the “Draft Regulations of the CPC Henan Provincial Committee on the Management System of People’s Communes and Certain Policies” and the “Summary Outline of the CPC Henan Provincial Committee’s Six-Level Cadre Conference.” See notes [2] and [3] on page 97 of this volume. [3] Refers to the “Resolution (Draft) Concerning the Management System of People’s Communes and Several Specific Policy Issues” adopted by the CPC Hubei Provincial Committee on March 8, 1959. See note [2] on page ___ of this volume. [4] Zhou Xiaozhou, who at the time served as First Secretary of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee. [5] Wang Renzhong, who at the time served as First Secretary of the CPC Hubei Provincial Committee. [6] Refers to the second report submitted by the CPC Guangdong Provincial Committee to the Central Committee and to Mao Zedong at 11 p.m. on March 11, 1959, concerning the implementation of the resolutions passed at the Zhengzhou Conference. See note [2] on page 108 of this volume.