Chapter 86 New Year's message[1]

(January 1, 1947) In 1946, the light and dark sides of the postwar world fought victoriously, as did the light and dark sides of postwar China.Both the post-war world and China have developed huge-scale people's movements for peace, democracy and freedom.This movement is bound to triumph.This movement cannot be stopped by any force.But the reactionaries always try to stop it.The task of the whole world and the entire Chinese people is to unite all forces and defeat the resistance of the reactionaries.In 1947, the world united front of the people of all countries, including China, against the U.S. policy of aggression will develop rapidly; .As a result, the situation in China will change in favor of the restoration of peace and the independence of the country.

During the Anti-Japanese War, we communists strived for the cooperation of all parties after the war, but at the same time, we warned: "The main ruling group of the Kuomintang is now secretly conducting its civil war under the smoke screen of the so-called 'convening of the National Assembly' and 'political settlement' If the people of the country don't pay attention, if they don't expose its plots and prevent its preparations, then there will be a morning when the cannons of the civil war will be heard." [2] After the War of Resistance Against Japan ended, we and The people of the whole country, together, used all their patience to prevent the outbreak and expansion of the civil war. Unfortunately, this effort was destroyed by the all-out attack of the reactionaries and the one-party "National Congress"[3] of the Kuomintang.However, the Chinese people are still going through two efforts to continue to strive for peace, that is, the arduous struggle of the people of all strata in the Liberated Areas to crush the attacks of the reactionaries, and the growing mass movement of the people of all strata in the Kuomintang ruled areas for democracy and freedom.This united will of the Chinese people will definitely override the will of any reactionaries, thus making it possible to negotiate peace in good faith among the parties and to live in real peace throughout the country.At present, the Kuomintang authorities have not yet expressed any minimal peaceful intentions. Under the instigation of the U.S. government, they are busy adorning themselves with a divisive "National Congress" and an authoritarian "Constitution"[4] in order to make their war and U.S. aid "legalization.But as long as the people of the whole country are united and persevere in their struggle, then, in the near future, the sunshine of freedom will surely shine on the land of the motherland, and an independent, peaceful and democratic new China will surely lay a solid foundation in the next few years.

According to the "Liberation Daily" published on January 1, 1947. -------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ note [1] This is Mao Zedong's New Year's speech published in the "Liberation Daily" on January 1, 1947. [2] See "On Coalition Government" ("Selected Works of Mao Zedong", Volume III, People's Publishing House, 1991 edition, p. 1051). [3] "National University", see note [14] on page 201 of this volume. [4] "Constitution", see note [16] on page 202 of this volume.