Chapter 8 Consult Deng Xiaoping's opinions on some policy issues in the newly liberated areas[1]

(January 14, 1948) Comrade Xiaoping: please answer the following question: (1) Should the new area be divided into two types of areas, one where a solid base can be quickly established, and the other where a long-term tug-of-war is required to establish a solid base, and adopt different policies for the work in the two areas? (2) Will the land reform in the new area be divided according to the outline of the land law, or will the rich peasants and some weak and small landlords be temporarily inactive? What is the attitude of the rich peasants and some weak and small landlords in the new area?

(3) Is there any enlightened gentleman to cooperate with us? (4) Are there many intellectuals who cooperate with us or express neutrality? (5) What is the attitude of businessmen from all walks of life? Can our army avoid raising funds from industrial and commercial capitalists in the new area? If so, what is the method? (6) How to deal with various personnel from the Kuomintang government, party headquarters, and the Three Youth League? Are some of them available? How to deal with Baojia Chang? Mao Zedong Zi Han Printed from manuscript. -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------

note [1] Deng Xiaoping, then political commissar of the Shanxi-Hebei-Shandong-Henan Field Army.On January 22, 1948, he detailed his views on six issues in his reply to Mao Zedong.On February 6, Mao Zedong sent another telegram to Deng Xiaoping, pointing out: "After the big counter-offensive, the struggle strategies and organizational forms of the new areas should be different from the old areas before Japan's surrender and the semi-old areas during the two years between Japan's surrender and the big counter-offensive. The strategy of the struggle seems to be divided into two stages: the first stage is to narrow the attack area, neutralize the rich peasants, and focus on the landlords. It should be divided into two steps: attacking the big landlord class and attacking the entire landlord class. In this stage, because the middle peasants are On the sidelines, the poor peasants, who account for 70% of the rural population, are the most active. Therefore, the peasant associations are actually dominated by poor peasants. It seems that they do not need to organize poor peasant groups, and the name of the peasant association seems to be the peasant association. The second stage , the land of all the feudal classes will be divided equally, and the rich peasants will only move at this time. At this time, the poor peasants should be organized as the leading backbone of the peasant association or the peasant association." On February 8, Deng Xiaoping replied to Mao Zedong, thinking that in the new area, establish such two The concept is very necessary: ​​first, "the establishment of base areas and the completion of land reform will take a long time, and it cannot be achieved in a year or a half"; second, "in terms of struggle tactics, we should gradually deepen the "In the beginning, we should narrow the attack surface to avoid making acute illness and tactical mistakes.The Dabie Mountains "should be divided into two types of areas, namely areas that can be consolidated and guerrilla areas."In areas that can be consolidated, attention should be paid to: (1) Disruption of equal distribution by middle peasants should be absolutely voluntary, not forced. (2) The Poor Peasant League has guaranteed the leading role of the poor peasants in the countryside, that is, it should be rapidly expanded into a peasant association, and the middle peasants and individual middle peasant activists should be recruited into the leading organization.It is also possible to form peasant associations instead of poor peasant leagues first, but the leadership of the poor peasants must be guaranteed. (3) For the time being, do not fight for the bottom line wealth of the rich peasants. (4) To enable landlords, especially small landlords, to live, not to wipe them all out.The reply also stated that the industrial and commercial businesses operated by the landlords should be retained and not confiscated.On February 17, Mao Zedong forwarded this telegram, pointing out: "The experience of the Dabie Mountains described by Xiaoping is extremely valuable, and I hope that all armies in various places can adopt it and apply it."