Two Letters to Wang Renzhong [1] Concerning the Convening of Cadre Meetings at All Levels Below the County Level (March 16, 1959)  Letter One Comrade Renzhong: This morning, please convene the first secretaries of the various prefectural committees and several county party secretaries for consultation: Following the provincial conference, should we devote a few days to holding four- or five-level cadre meetings at the county level? Who ought to attend such meetings, and how many days should they last? Subsequently, should we hold a congress of commune representatives? If so, who should be invited, and over how many days? And ought we to elect a commune management committee—how should its membership be constituted? We can discuss this further this afternoon. Mao Zedong 2:00 A.M., March 16  Letter Two Comrade Renzhong: I am sending you some documents; they are most interesting and enjoyable to read. I advise you to peruse them this morning in one sitting—about four hours should suffice.

In the afternoon, please again invite a small group of prefectural party secretaries and county party secretaries to a roundtable discussion on how counties, districts, townships, and villages should organize their meetings. We may talk again tonight. What do you think? Spending today in this way would certainly not be unproductive for Hubei’s work; why not give it a try? Mao Zedong 7:00 A.M., March 16 Printed from the manuscript. Notes [1] Wang Renzhong, then First Secretary of the CPC Hubei Provincial Committee.

Internal Party Correspondence [1] (March 17, 1959) To the First Secretaries of the Party Committees of Provinces, Municipalities, and Autonomous Regions: On the Question of County and Commune Meetings The six-level cadre conferences at the provincial, municipal, and regional levels are about to conclude. Should we now hold four- or five-level cadre meetings at the county level? In my view, we should indeed hold them, and with great fanfare—though without any press coverage whatsoever. Counties throughout Henan are currently conducting lively and highly beneficial four-level cadre meetings, overseen directly by leading cadres at the provincial level who are sharing their experience to guide the various counties. Hubei, Guangdong, and Jiangsu have all instructed that every county within their respective provinces must hold such meetings. The Jiangyin County Party Committee in Jiangsu has already arranged for a meeting involving ten thousand participants. In Henan, two counties are holding ten-thousand-person gatherings, while most others are convening assemblies of four to five thousand people. I propose that each county organize a five-level cadre meeting, comprising representatives from the county party committee, the commune party committee, the production brigade (or administrative district), the production team (formerly the advanced cooperative), and the production subteam (the original production group, also known as the work team). Each level must be represented, ensuring that every team leader, branch secretary, and production team leader in the commune, along with the general branch secretaries and production brigade leaders of the administrative districts, together with a contingent of commune-level cadres, all attend. It is essential to include those who remain ideologically unconvinced—those inclined toward pessimism or calculation—and ideally they should constitute roughly one-tenth of the total. A small number of active members among the commune’s residents might also be invited. In this way, all these individuals will have the opportunity to hear the address delivered by the county party committee’s first secretary, whose remarks will generally be of a higher standard than those typically offered by commune first secretaries. Thereafter, an open discussion should be initiated, under the principle of “no blame for speaking freely,” allowing for extensive debate and public airing of views over several days to achieve ideological unity. Three sets of opposing viewpoints should confront one another during the meeting: first, between grassroots cadres and their superiors at the commune and county levels; second, between those who remain ideologically divided and those who have already reached consensus; and third, between approximately one-tenth of the so-called “pessimists” and “calculators” (many of whom are wrongly labeled as such, having been misjudged by others) and the remaining nine-tenths of more constructive elements. A period of three to four days would be adequate for this debate. Subsequently, another three to four days could be devoted to resolving specific practical issues, making a total of seven or eight days quite sufficient. A five-level county-level meeting will undoubtedly be more vibrant and dynamic than a six-level provincial conference. We must instruct both the commune party committee’s first secretary and the county party committee’s first secretary on how to conduct this work. During the meeting, these comrades should be specially convened to deliver a briefing, enabling them to draw lessons from the recent months when certain misguided measures—such as excessive enthusiasm for collectivization, uniformity, arbitrary redistribution, and excessive tax collection—had temporarily estranged them from the masses. Moving forward, by thinking more carefully and working more effectively, they will be able to re-establish close ties with the people. It would also be appropriate to discuss the issue of partial ownership of production subteams (production groups or work teams), beyond the existing tripartite structure of communal, district (brigade), and team (advanced cooperative) ownership, management, and accounting. This question was raised by Comrades Wang Renzhong and Tao Lujia [2]. I believe it is reasonable and worthy of consideration. The county-level meetings could be concluded by late March, after which there would be no need to convene a commune representative assembly for the entire month of April. Instead, communes could devote a full month to production activities, holding smaller meetings to address specific problems. Individual production teams might organize Party member meetings during their spare time from work, followed by mass gatherings, thereby fostering a broad-based public discussion. Since hundreds of people from each commune will have already participated in the county-level meeting, where the key issues have been thoroughly aired, direct post-work public deliberations can proceed immediately. Some counties in Hubei have already begun engaging in such nationwide discussions. By May, all communes across the country should set aside three days—three days will be ample—to hold the first People’s Commune Representative Assembly, with delegates representing men and women, young and old, those with positive and negative records (excluding landlords, rich peasants, counter-revolutionaries, and bad elements, but including well-off middle peasants) to deliberate on certain matters and elect the commune management committee. Such representative assemblies are recommended to be held four times a year, each lasting one to two, at most three, days. Commune first secretaries must learn to skillfully lead these sessions. Our comrades serving as commune party committee secretaries must, day in and day out, keep the interests of the masses foremost in mind and constantly ensure that their policies and measures align with the current level of awareness and pressing needs of the people. Any departure from these two principles is bound to fail. County and prefectural committees should pay particular attention to strengthening leadership within the communes, dispatching politically robust cadres to assist their less experienced counterparts. Prefectural committees should likewise prioritize sending personnel to bolster weaker county committees. Both counties and communes must strengthen the leadership core of the production teams—the basic units of accounting—which were formerly advanced cooperatives. The foregoing constitutes merely a set of recommendations; the most appropriate course of action remains for you to consider and decide upon, implementing it promptly. While the county holds its meeting, all levels of the commune should assign personnel to oversee production or rotate attendance so as not to disrupt agricultural work. Mao Zedong 7:00 A.M., Wuchang, date unspecified Printed from the manuscript. Notes [1] This is a letter from Mao Zedong to the first secretaries of the party committees of provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions concerning the convening of five-level cadre meetings at the county level and the first People’s Commune Representative Assembly; the title was formulated by Mao Zedong himself. [2] Wang Renzhong, then First Secretary of the CPC Hubei Provincial Committee. Tao Lujia, then First Secretary of the CPC Shanxi Provincial Committee.