Issue
Critique on "Comrade Peng Dehuai's Opinion Letter"
(July 16, 1959)
Issued for reference by all comrades.
Mao Zedong
July 16
The rural communization in 1958 was of great significance.
Although there was a period of confusion on the issue of ownership and some shortcomings and mistakes emerged, after a series of meetings in Wuchang, Zhengzhou, Shanghai, etc., these have basically been corrected, gradually moving onto the normal track of distribution according to labor.
In the 1958 Great Leap Forward, the problem of unemployment was resolved.
In a country like ours, this is not a small matter but a major one.
In the nationwide steelmaking campaign, some resources and manpower were wasted, which is a relatively large loss.
However, a massive preliminary survey of the nation's geology was conducted, many technical personnel were trained, and the vast number of cadres received tempering and improvement.
Therefore, in this aspect, there were both losses and gains.
B. How to summarize the experiences and lessons from our work.
In my view, some of the shortcomings and mistakes that emerged in the 1958 Great Leap Forward were unavoidable.
There are always shortcomings amidst great achievements; this is a matter of two aspects of a single issue.
The prominent contradiction we currently face in construction work is the tension in various aspects caused by proportional imbalance.
This has already affected the relations between workers and peasants, between different strata in the cities, and between different strata among the peasants, and therefore it is also of a political nature.
The reasons for the shortcomings and mistakes that occurred in the past are multifaceted.
The objective factor is that we are unfamiliar with socialist construction work and lack complete experience.
Our understanding of the law of planned and proportional development of socialism is not deep enough, and the policy of "walking on two legs" has not been implemented in all aspects of practical work.
In handling economic issues, we have not yet been as adept as we were in handling political issues such as shelling Jinmen and quelling the rebellion in Tibet.
In addition, our country's backward state of being "poor and blank," and the people's urgent desire to change the status quo.
Furthermore, the favorable trends in the international situation were also important factors promoting our Great Leap Forward.
And utilizing this favorable opportunity to accelerate our construction work and create an even more favorable international situation was also entirely necessary and correct.
In the past period, quite a few problems worthy of attention have been exposed in our methods of thinking and work style.
These mainly are:
1. A tendency towards boasting and exaggeration has grown relatively commonly.
At the Beidaihe Conference last year, the grain output was overestimated, creating a false impression that we could free our hands to vigorously develop industry.
In understanding the development of steel, there was serious one-sidedness and a lack of necessary balanced planning.
These also constitute the fault of not being sufficiently realistic.
This is probably the cause of a series of problems.
The tendency towards boasting and exaggeration spread through all departments, causing significant damage to the Party's prestige.
Amidst the wave of high grain and cotton yields and doubling steel output, extravagance and waste developed accordingly.
The autumn harvest was handled roughly, without regard to cost, living a rich life while being poor.
What is serious is that for a considerably long period, it was not easy to obtain the true situation.
The emergence of the tendency towards boasting and exaggeration has its social causes, which deserve thorough study.
Of course, this is also related to the fact that some of our work only had task targets but lacked specific measures.
2. The fanaticism of the petty bourgeoisie makes us prone to commit "Left" errors.
During the Great Leap Forward, like many other comrades, I was bewildered by the achievements and the enthusiasm of the mass movements.
Some "Left" tendencies developed to a considerable degree, always wanting to stride into communism in one step, with the idea of taking the lead once gaining the upper hand, putting behind us the mass line and the style of seeking truth from facts that the Party has formed over a long period.
In our methods of thinking, we often confused relationships such as strategic layout and specific measures, long-term policies and current steps, the whole and the parts, the large collective and the small collective.
Some targets were raised level by level, with layers added, turning requirements that originally needed several years or even more than a decade to achieve into targets to be met in one year or a few months.
This thus became divorced from reality and failed to gain the support of the masses.
Such things as prematurely negating the principle of equivalent exchange, prematurely proposing that meals should be free, rashly popularizing certain techniques without appraisal, and lightly negating certain economic laws and scientific principles are all manifestations of "Leftism."
In the view of some comrades, as long as politics is put in command, it can replace everything, forgetting that putting politics in command accelerates our economic construction by enhancing labor consciousness, ensuring the improvement of product quantity and quality, and giving play to the masses' initiative and creativity.
Putting politics in command cannot replace economic laws, still less can it replace specific measures in economic work.
Putting politics in command and precise and effective measures in economic work must be given equal emphasis, neither to be neglected.
Correcting these "Left" phenomena is generally more difficult than overcoming Right-leaning conservative thinking, as has been proven by the history of our Party.
In the latter half of last year, there seemed to be an atmosphere where attention was paid to opposing Right-leaning conservative thinking, while the subjectivist "Left" aspect was neglected.
After a series of measures following the Zhengzhou Conference last winter, some "Left" phenomena have basically been corrected, which is a great victory.
The current task is for the whole Party to unite as one and continue to work hard.
I feel that systematically summarizing the achievements and lessons of our work since the latter half of last year, and further educating the entire Party membership, would be very beneficial.
The aim is to distinguish right from wrong and raise ideological awareness, generally without pursuing individual responsibility.
Otherwise, it would be detrimental to unity and detrimental to the cause.
Regarding issues of unfamiliarity with the laws of socialist construction and other such problems, through practice and exploration since the latter half of last year, some issues can be clarified, and some issues can be learned through another period of study and exploration.
Regarding problems in methods of thinking and work style, we have already had this profound lesson, making it easier for us to awaken and comprehend.
However, to overcome them thoroughly still requires arduous effort.
This letter is appended in the book "Peng Dehuai's Self-Account," published by the People's Publishing House in December 1981.

--- Notes

[1] Refers to the letter written by Peng Dehuai, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Vice Premier of the State Council, and Minister of National Defense, to Mao Zedong on July 14, 1959.
When Mao Zedong issued instructions to print and distribute this letter, he drafted the title "Comrade Peng Dehuai's Opinion Letter."
The main content of Peng Dehuai's letter is as follows:
A. The achievements of the 1958 Great Leap Forward are undoubtedly confirmed.
The growth rate of the total industrial and agricultural output value and national fiscal revenue in that year was unprecedented among all countries in the world, breaking through the established norms of socialist construction speed.
Through the Great Leap Forward, it was basically confirmed that the general line of achieving more, faster, better, and more economically is correct.
In the capital construction of 1958, it now appears that some projects were overly rushed and excessive, dispersing part of the funds and postponing some necessary projects.
This is a shortcoming.
The basic reason is a lack of experience.
Our understanding of this point was not deep enough, and our recognition came too late.
Therefore, in 1959, not only did we fail to slow down the pace and exercise appropriate control, but we continued the Great Leap Forward, which prevented timely adjustment of the imbalances and added new temporary difficulties.
The arrangement of the 1960 plan should be based on seeking truth from facts and being prudent and reliable, and should be seriously considered.
For some capital construction projects that truly cannot be completed, we must make the utmost determination to temporarily halt them.
In this regard, we must forgo some things to gain others; otherwise, the severe imbalance will be prolonged, and the passive situation in certain aspects will be difficult to extricate ourselves from, hindering the leap forward speed to catch up with and surpass Britain in the next four years.