Comment on Briefing No. 3 on the South Three Regions Conference [1]
(March 17, 1961)

This document [2] is to be distributed to all comrades [3]. This document raises many major issues that are well worth studying.

Mao Zedong
March 17

189

must, in accordance with the Chairman's teachings on the Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention, examine why we fail to proceed from reality and cannot correctly implement policies. Unhealthy inner-party life prevents the true situation at the lower levels from reaching the higher levels—this is a very big problem. In addition, there are many other problems within the party, such as the relationship between the party and government, and the party and communes; the democratic work style of cadres; supervision work; and the education and improvement of cadres, all of which must be solved. Jiang Weiqing, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee, held that in order to systematically summarize the rich experience of the people's communes over the past three years, it would be better to draft two documents: one a set of regulations or a model charter, and the other an inner-party directive. Besides affirming the correct existing experience of the people's communes and preventing and overcoming past erroneous practices, the regulations or charter could also refer to a set of effective policies (such as distribution according to labor, more pay for more work, private plots, household sideline occupations, etc.), systems, and methods from the advanced cooperatives, codifying them into regulations. The inner-party directive could include three aspects:
1. Broadly explain the situation and greatly boost morale.
2. Continue to clearly explain the issue of taking agriculture as the foundation, mainly discussing the relationship between agriculture and other production sectors, preferably setting certain specific proportional ratios.
3. Strengthen Party leadership, strengthen ideological education for cadres, improve the Party's organizational life, strengthen mass supervision over cadres, improve the work style of cadres, conscientiously implement the Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention, conscientiously engage in study, etc.
4. Cadres throughout the Party, especially the principal leading comrades of Party committees at all levels, must personally engage in investigation and research, and thoroughly correct impractical styles of work. Only in this way can mistakes be lessened or avoided.
When discussing Part Three of the draft work regulations (the issue of production brigades), the Central South group considered that stipulating the "four fixeds" ["generally remain unchanged for at least ten years"] was too rigid, and wondered if it could be changed to "this system shall remain unchanged for a considerable period." Regarding output contracting, it was better to stipulate the contracting timeframe; it could be contracted annually, or once every two or three years. How to bring the initiative of production teams into play, expand their decision-making power, fully utilize resources, rationally use labor, and boldly operate various scattered sideline occupations is an extremely major policy issue that should be emphasized in the work regulations.

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Comment on "Opinions of Several Comrades from East China [1] on Several Problems Currently Needing Resolution in the Rural People's Communes"
(March 17, 1961)

This document [2] is very well written. Distribute it to all comrades [3] for study. When discussing the issue of the commune regulations [4], please seriously consider these opinions.

Mao Zedong
March 17

191

on conditions such as production and income levels, geographical circumstances, original foundations, and the willingness of the masses, to be decided through full discussion by the masses, ensuring it benefits production and is convenient for the masses. After adjustment, it should be stabilized for a period, like the ownership system, remaining unchanged for at least seven years, to facilitate the development of productive forces. Production teams should not be too large, generally around 20 households; production brigades should generally maintain the scale of the original advanced cooperatives; the scale of the commune should ideally be equivalent to the original township. (2) The problem of the management system. The commune should concentrate its efforts on grasping agricultural production. Work related to commerce, culture and education, health, finance, industry, etc., should in some cases be taken back under the management of county-level or higher departments. Regarding production brigades and production teams, the commune should mainly grasp policy, guiding principles, planning, the supply of means of production, and other problems that production teams cannot solve themselves. Arrangements for farm work, technical measures, etc., should mainly be decided by the production brigades and teams; the commune must not give arbitrary direction. The three great democracies—political, economic, and in production and livelihood—must be promoted. (3) The problem of the relationship between the party, government, and commune. Party leadership should mainly grasp the central work of a given period and routine comprehensive arrangements. The following leadership method should be implemented: "Monopolize major powers, decentralize minor powers; the Party committee decides, all parties implement; implementation must be decisive, without departing from principle; the Party committee bears responsibility for work inspection." The most basic method is to understand the situation (investigation and research), grasp policy, and set an example (typical demonstration). (4) The problem of cadres. Cadres at the three levels of commune, brigade, and team must be properly selected, managed, and educated. All cadres should be subject to democratic elections. We must rely on leadership inspection and mass supervision to manage cadres properly, and we must educate cadres to implement the Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention. (5) The problem of operation and management. A series of good operation and management methods from the period of the advanced cooperatives should be restored. The opinions of the masses are:
1. The power of production management should be returned to the production brigades and teams; higher levels must not engage in arbitrary direction.
2. Choose good stewards. During the advanced cooperative period, some cadres had experience in operation and management, but were later dismissed. Now commune members demand that these people serve as cadres again. The report also listed several other problems currently needing resolution in rural work:
1. Grain requisition and procurement must be fixed; if the "three fixeds" are not fixed, people's minds will not be at ease.
2. The state cannot fully cover the supply of means of production in the countryside; planned material exchanges among counties, communes, and teams should be organized.
3. Further reduce the urban population and the rural non-agricultural population, striving to shift more labor into agricultural production.
4. A certain system of mass supervision should be established for the management of commune-owned economic entities; some of these should be taken back under county management.

[3] Refers to the comrades attending the Central Committee Work Conference in Guangzhou at that time.

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--- Notes

[1] Refers to the meeting of leading officials from the greater regions and provincial/municipal party committees of the Central South, Southwest, and East China regions, held in Guangzhou from March 10 to 13, 1961.


[1] Refers to Ke Qingshi, First Secretary of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, First Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and Mayor; Zeng Xisheng, Second Secretary of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Anhui Provincial Party Committee; Tan Qilong, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Secretary of the Secretariat of the Shandong Provincial Party Committee and Governor; Jiang Weiqing, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee; Jiang Hua, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee; Lin Hujia, Secretary of the Secretariat of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee; Yang Shangkui, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee; Liu Junxiu, Secretary of the Secretariat of the Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee; Ye Fei, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Fujian Provincial Party Committee; Wei Wenbo, Alternate Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the Secretariat of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee.


[2] Refers to Briefing No. 3 on the South Three Regions Conference, compiled and printed on March 13, 1961. The briefing summarized speeches made during the afternoon of March 12 by various discussion groups at the conference, concerning the "Work Regulations for People's Communes (Draft)." Among them, Tan Qilong, Secretary of the Secretariat of the East China Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the Secretariat of the Shandong Provincial Party Committee, pointed out:
(1) From the situation in Shandong, the broad masses of cadres and people urgently need a set of regulations of a model charter nature for the communes.
(2) Proposes drafting another inner-party document, focusing on resolving several unresolved problems in inner-party ideology, policy, organization, and leadership methods, for the leadership to master.
(3) The current rural situation needs to be analyzed. The whole party must clearly recognize the present situation, affirm that the central authorities' Twelve Articles and other policies are completely correct, affirm that the rectification campaign over the past few months has been correctly grasped, and boost the whole party's confidence. As long as we continue to grasp it firmly, there is great hope.
The problems currently needing resolution by the leadership are:
(1) We must resolve early and resolutely to cut down the excessive labor force in industry and various undertakings, and reduce the urban non-agricultural population. Otherwise, the relationship between various undertakings and agriculture cannot be properly balanced, and the grain problem cannot be solved.
(2) Resolutely delegate many powers, especially the power over production, down to the teams and peasants, letting them take responsibility for production and bring their initiative into play; arbitrary direction must no longer be allowed.
(3) The leadership must truly learn lessons, especially


[2] Refers to the South Three Regions Conference document "Opinions of Several Comrades from East China on Several Problems Currently Needing Resolution in the Rural People's Communes," the content of which is as follows:
(1) The problem of organizational scale. When adjusting the scale of communes and teams, it must be based


[3] Refers to the comrades attending the Central Committee Work Conference in Guangzhou at that time.


[4] Refers to the "Work Regulations for Rural People's Communes (Draft)." This draft regulation was discussed and approved at this Central Committee Work Conference.