Not Blindly Following the Instructions of Superiors or What Has Been Read; Considering Only Information Which Has Been Ascertained Through Exchange, Comparison and Reconsideration

Contained in the Selected Works of Chen Yun Vol. 3. Key Points of Chen Yun's Speech to the Leading Comrades of the Party, Government and Army in Zhejiang Province on January 24, 1990. In his speech, Chen Yun emphasized Mao Zedong's pragmatic attitude and leadership methods. I discerned that the basic guiding ideology running through these was to seek truth from facts. But how does one seek truth from facts? At that time, my answer to this question was that we should not blindly follow the instructions of superiors or what we have read; rather, we should value only that information which has been ascertained through exchange, comparison and reconsideration. However, I do not mean that we should disobey the instructions of the higher authorities nor that we should lay documents and books aside. By valuing only certain information I mean that we should proceed from actual conditions in studying and handling problems. This is the most reliable method. By the term exchange I mean that we should exchange ideas. The main reason why many mistakes have been made is that we took a one-sided approach to problems and regarded lopsided presentations as overall realities. If leaders exchange their views often and in particular listen to differing opinions, they will benefit considerably.

If leaders exchange their views often and in particular listen to differing opinions, they will benefit considerably. By the term comparison I mean that we should make comprehensive comparisons. Chairman Mao had his own method in making comparisons. Before making a decision, he would allow one or two weeks in order to listen to different opinions and reconsider. If there are no opposing views, we should assume an antithetical viewpoint. By absorbing what is correct and refuting what is incorrect, we can correct our own views. Moreover, we must revise our views in the process of practice, because people are not always able to understand things correctly the first time. But here, reconsideration does not mean constantly making random changes. He emphasized that “the first part of the title of this article concerns materialism, the second part concerns dialectics, and the integration of the two is what is meant by the term materialist dialectics.”

There are two ways of conducting practical research. One is for leaders to direct working groups or to send them to the countryside or to factories to do research, which is necessary. The other is that each high- or middle-rank leader should have some intimate friends or staff members available with the courage to speak the truth, so that the leader can learn from them what the cadres at the grass-roots level and the masses are thinking. This way of research is true, quick and extensive. By "true" I mean that these people tell you the truth and speak their minds because they trust you and know you will not punish them, I have some friends of this kind. By "quick" I mean that you can promptly discover an incipient problem. By "extensive" I mean that in every province and municipality and in every profession, there are many high and middle rank cadres including retired ones. Because of this, the latter way of investigation is more important, although both are indispensable.