Directive from the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China to the Front Committee of the Fourth Army of the Red Army

In September 1929, the letter was drafted by Chen Yi on behalf of the Central Committee and examined and approved by Zhou Enlai in accordance with the spirit of Zhou Enlai's many talks and the meeting of the CPC Central Committee. It is also known as "September Letter of the Central Committee". When it was included in Selected Works of Zhou Enlai (Part I) published by the People’s Press in 1980, individual passages were not selected for inclusion.

The main contents of this letter are as follows:

(1) Analyzing the then political situation. It is pointed out that the various contradictions that led to the warlords' internecine wars could not be overcome, and therefore the warlords' internecine wars were bound to continue to develop. The Red Army existed in a situation of warlords' internecine wars and in the course of the development of the agrarian revolution, coupled with the vastness of China's territory, “we have the Red Army in the countryside, and later we will have political power in the cities. This is the characteristic of the Chinese revolution.” Whoever has doubts about the need for a Red Army does not understand the reality of the Chinese revolution and has liquidationist ideas.

(2) Defining the tasks of the Red Army. It is pointed out that the basic tasks of the Red Army at present are as follows: firstly, to mobilize the masses in struggle, to accomplish the agrarian revolution and to establish Soviet regimes; secondly, to carry on guerrilla warfare; arm the peasants and expand the Red Army; and thirdly, to extend guerrilla areas and our political influence throughout the country. If the Red Army incapable of performing these tasks, it would be no different from any other troops.

It is also pointed out that the Red Army itself is a concentrated strength of the class, and all actions were naturally political or military, but the Party's guidance should never ignore the many unresolved problems in the daily life of the masses, not just raise general political slogans, but should carefully understand the needs of the masses in their daily lives, and lead from the struggles of the masses in their daily lives to political struggles and even armed struggles.

This kind of struggle is what the masses themselves need. It is not simply the mobilization of military forces, the heroic hard work of a few individuals, and the solidarity of the masses around the Party. Confiscation of the property of the landlords and gentry is the main source of sustenance for the Red Army, but it must go through the mass line, and attention should be paid to the use of this mode of work.

(3) The task of "correcting wrong tendencies" is put forward. It is pointed out that the right deviationist ideas in the Red Army, such as liquidationism, the notion that the forces should be dispersed, the wish to desert and the desire to reduce the size of organizations, ultra-democracy and the inability of the Red Army to survive if separated from production are wrong and result from our comrades' low level of theoretical understanding and the lack of educational work by the Party.

All these ideas are wrong and result from our comrades' low level of theoretical understanding and the lack of educational work by the Party.

(4) Emphasizing strengthening the Party's leadership of the Red Army. It is pointed out that it is correct that all power in the Party is centralized in the Front Committee as the leading organ, and this must not be shaken.

The term "patriarchalism" should not be used mechanically to weaken the power of the guiding organs and to cover up for ultra-democracy.

There is no doubt that in dealing with any question the front committee should first take a decision and then refer it to the subordinate organs for discussion. It will not do to take decisions only after soliciting agreement from subordinates or to delay decisions while waiting for their opinions. To do so would weaken the power of the leading organs at higher levels and have a bad influence on Party life at the lower levels.

The letter of instruction has played a positive and great role in unifying the thought within the Party of the Fourth Red Army and opening the Gutian Conference, the Ninth National Congress of the Fourth Red Army.