Comments by the Central Committee on the Hunan Provincial Party Committee’s Report Regarding the Deployment of the Rectification Campaign in Both Party Organizations and People’s Communes
(December 22, 1960)

I

To all Central Bureaus, and to the Party Committees of provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions:

One copy of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee’s report dated December 18, 1960 [1] is being forwarded for your reference.

The Central Committee
December £², 1960
Printed from Mao Zedong’s handwritten draft.

II

After Liu, Deng, and Peng Zhen [2] have reviewed it, please transmit it via telegram to Shangkun [3]. Also, distribute copies to all comrades attending the Central Conference [4]. Do not send it to Tibet.

Mao
Printed from the handwritten draft.

Notes

[1] This report from the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee was addressed to the Central-South Bureau and simultaneously submitted to the Central Committee and to Mao Zedong.

It states that we intend, before next year’s peak spring plowing season, to fundamentally reverse the current passive situation in rural work. The approach will be to resolutely adopt the experience of the Tonghaikou People’s Commune in Hubei Province: concentrate our forces to fight annihilating battles, proceeding in stages and batches, moving from specific points to the broader area. We will first tackle communes and production teams with the most serious problems, then those with relatively more issues. The entire province plans to carry out this work in three phases. Pilot projects began in early November, and most are expected to conclude by late December. These initial pilots will have a decisive impact on the subsequent two phases; we insist that they not be rushed or carried out carelessly, but rather conducted thoroughly and effectively. Meanwhile, county Party committees are to convene enlarged meetings for rectification, aiming to completely resolve leadership-related problems. The second batch of pilot projects can be launched in early January next year, followed one month later by the third batch. While concentrating efforts on these pilot sites, routine work across the board will be addressed through meetings convened by the commune Party committees, involving group leaders—those at the level of production team leaders and above. With regard to the Central Committee’s Twelve Instructions, wherever communes are capable of doing so, concrete regulations must be formulated and strictly implemented. Another key factor in ensuring the success of this campaign lies in the fact that the cadres of the commune-rectification work teams must not only be numerous but also of high quality; the political caliber and understanding of the leading members of these teams must surpass that of the existing commune secretaries. Therefore, when organizing the rectification teams, a thorough reorganization of the existing workforces is required.

[2] Liu refers to Liu Shaoqi. Deng refers to Deng Xiaoping, who at that time served as General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council. Peng Zhen was then a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee.

[3] Shangkun refers to Yang Shangkun, who at that time held the post of Alternate Secretary of the CPC Central Committee Secretariat and Director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee.

[4] Refers to the upcoming meeting of the CPC Central Committee to be held in Beijing.

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