Critique and Revisions to Jiang Qing’s Speech Draft at the Enlarged Meeting of the Central Military Commission
But rather represent the proletariat and the working people. However, if we do not pay attention to strictly demanding our children, they may also degenerate, may engage in a capitalist restoration, and the property and power of the proletariat will be seized back by the bourgeoisie.
Four
Over the past few months, the entire army has had much good experience. According to comrades in Harbin, last summer the army there intervened from the left. There were also those that intervened from the right and did some wrong things.
[1]
The edited transcript of the speech delivered by Jiang Qing, deputy head of the Central Committee’s Cultural Revolution Group and adviser to the army-wide Cultural Revolution Group, at the Enlarged Meeting of the Central Military Commission on April 12, 1967, was twice submitted to Mao Zedong for review and revision. Part One here consists of the critique of the speech draft Jiang Qing submitted for review on April 15, 1967; Part Two is the critique of the revised draft she submitted on April 17, 1967; Parts Three and Four are Mao Zedong’s revisions to the April 17 draft she submitted, in which the text printed in Song typeface consists of words added and rewritten by Mao Zedong.
[2]
In her submission report to Mao Zedong dated April 15, 1967, Jiang Qing said: “This is a speech I gave at the enlarged meeting of the Military Commission, which Comrade Lin Biao said should be circulated. I revised it several times, but it lacks proper citations and is not polished enough, since I had no prepared speech script. I hope you will review and revise it.” Mao Zedong made some revisions to this submitted draft. Primarily, on page 5, he added some content to complement the historical story Jiang Qing told about “Chu Long Persuades Empress Dowager Zhao.” On page 7, where Jiang Qing stated, regarding the army’s intervention in local Cultural Revolution affairs, “It was said before not to intervene, but actually this non-intervention, the Chairman long ago said was false, and in reality there was long already intervention.” Before the phrase “the Chairman long ago said was false,” Mao added the phrase “as far as many units are concerned.” On page 9, where Jiang Qing said that in the 17 years before the Cultural Revolution “in education, some intellectuals were cultivated who were completely divorced from the workers, peasants and soldiers, and from production.” Before the phrase “intellectuals divorced from production,” Mao added the nine characters “and divorced from proletarian politics.” Moreover, there were some other textual modifications and additions or deletions.
[3]
Mao Zedong’s revisions to the draft Jiang Qing submitted for review on April 17, 1967, besides Parts Three and Four here,
387
The Complete Works of Mao Zedong, Volume 49
also included the following points:
On page 4, the sentence “At present, under the call of our great leader Chairman Mao, comrades are establishing new meritorious deeds for the people” was changed to: “At present, under the call of Chairman Mao and the Central Committee, comrades are establishing new meritorious deeds for the people.” On page 6, the nine characters “study the Chairman’s work methods” were deleted from the sentence “study the Chairman’s work methods, then go and engage in investigation and study, and find the true Leftists.” On page 7, when the submitted draft spoke of the Cultural Revolution situation in Guangzhou, it stated: “They have a very good experience, that is, regarding organizations manipulated by bad elements, do not rashly declare them reactionary organizations, but instead arrest their ringleaders, those bad elements with confirmed evidence, and split and disintegrate that organization.” Mao Zedong changed the phrase “split and disintegrate that organization” to: “or let the masses of that organization themselves elect new leaders.” On page 9, when the submitted draft spoke of the state of literary and artistic creation and education in the 17 years before the Cultural Revolution, it wrote: “Basically, it is stuff that is famous, foreign and ancient, or distorted images of workers, peasants and soldiers. As for education, that is entirely their own set, plus a set of Soviet revisionism.” Mao Zedong changed “basically it is” to “a great deal of it is,” and changed “that is entirely” to “that is almost entirely.” On the same page, where Jiang Qing spoke of resigning from some work posts in the early days after the founding of the People’s Republic, she said: “I had resolved this issue in my own thinking.” Mao Zedong changed it to: “In my own thinking, only with respect to a certain point, I had resolved this issue.” On page 10, Jiang Qing said that before the Cultural Revolution, “things presented on the stage and the screen were all bourgeois and feudal stuff, or distorted images of workers, peasants and soldiers.” Mao Zedong changed “were all” to “were a great deal of.” On page 13, Jiang Qing said: “I have many chronic bodily illnesses, but my heart is good. The winter before last, they tormented me into developing heart disease.” Mao Zedong deleted these words. On page 14, Jiang Qing said: “Originally, writing articles like ‘On Hai Rui Dismissed from Office’ and ‘On the Three Family Village’ was personally led by the Chairman there, written by Comrade Yao Wenyuan.” Mao Zedong deleted the phrase “was personally led by the Chairman there,” and after “Comrade Yao Wenyuan,” added in parentheses the ten characters “and the writing team he organized.” Furthermore, Mao Zedong made some other textual modifications and content additions or deletions to this speech draft.
[4]
Refers to the article “Chu Long Persuades Empress Dowager Zhao” from the Stratagems of the Warring States.

Archive Photo
Mao Zedong and Jiang Qing during the Cultural Revolution.
389