V. Democratic Centralism in The Party

Experience in the 11th struggle between the two lines has further borne out the extreme importance of the Party's democratic centralism. Consequently, additions are made to the General Programme of the draft and necessary provisions added to other relevant articles.

Our Party is organized on the principle of democratic centralism which means centralism on the basis of democracy and democracy under centralized guidance. The "gang of four" deliberately trampled on the organizational principle of our Party and carried on many anti-Party factional and splittist activities. They undermined both democracy and centralism. They were arbitrary and tyrannical, they lorded it over others, did not scruple to slap political labels on those who held opinions differing from theirs and wilfully attack them, thus gravely damaging inner-Party democracy. They attacked the Party's organizational principle and Party discipline as "the old rut" and "restrictions and fetters" which ought to be discarded, and they advocated anarchism, clamouring that "the correct orientation is to direct the spearhead upwards against the leadership," thus seriously undermining the Party's centralized leadership and its solidarity and unity. While deepening the exposure and criticism of the counter-revolutionary crimes which the "gang of four" perpetrated in their attempt to split and crush our Party, we must earnestly educate the whole Party in democratic centralism so as to put democratic centralism on a sounder basis.

Chairman Mao stressed, "In the present great struggle, the Chinese Communist Party demands that all its leading bodies and all its members and cadres should give the fullest expression to their initiative, which alone can ensure victory. This initiative must be demonstrated concretely in the ability of the leading bodies, the cadres and the Party rank and file to work creatively, in their readiness to assume responsibility, in the exuberant vigour they show in their work, in their courage and ability to raise questions, voice opinions and criticize defects, and in the comradely supervision that is maintained over the leading bodies and the leading cadres. Otherwise, 'initiative' will be an empty thing. But the exercise of such initiative depends on the spread of democracy in Party life. It cannot be brought into play if there is not enough democracy in Party life."

How can democracy be promoted to the full? This demands that we should really apply within the Party and among the people the following principles advocated by Chairman Mao: "Say all you know and say it without reserve," "Blame not the speaker but be warned by his words," and "Correct mistakes if you have committed them and guard against them if you have not," and that we should let the masses say what is on their minds, even if they should abuse us. It is entirely wrong to forbid the masses to speak out, to be afraid of differing opinions or to muzzle criticism. This demands that we should settle controversial issues among the people by the democratic method, that is, by the method of discussion, criticism, persuasion and education and not by the method of coercion or repression. This demands that we should handle the relations among comrades by the method of starting from the desire for unity, distinguishing between right and wrong through criticism or struggle and arriving at a new unity, and not by "waging a ruthless struggle and dealing merciless blows." This demands that among members of Party committees we should earnestly apply the principle of combining collective leadership with individual responsibility under a division of labour, and that we should rely on the political experience and wisdom of the collective and prevent and overcome the bad tendencies towards one-man rule or timidity in shouldering individual responsibility. So long as we thoroughly promote democracy, we shall be able to release the initiative of the masses both inside and outside the Party, and we shall be able to unite the masses of the people who make up over 95 per cent of our total population. If this is done, we can do our work better and better and overcome the difficulties we encounter more quickly and our cause will advance far more smoothly.

We must realize fully the importance of promoting democracy. Any act that impairs the Party's democratic life and violates the democratic rights of Party members runs counter to democratic centralism, and Party discipline prohibits it. The draft explicitly stipulates that Party members have the right to criticize Party organizations and working personnel in leading posts at all levels and make proposals to them and also the right to bypass the immediate leadership and present their appeals and complaints to higher levels, up to and including the Central Committee and the Chairman of the Central Committee. It stipulates that if a Party member holds different views with regard to the decisions or directives of the Party organizations, he or she is allowed to reserve these views and has the right to bring up the matter for discussion at Party meetings and the right to bypass the immediate leadership and report to higher levels, up to and including the Central Committee and the Chairman of the Central Committee. It is absolutely imper-missible for anyone to suppress criticism or to retaliate. Those guilty of doing so should be investigated and punished. It is precisely for the purpose of safeguarding the democratic rights of Party members and promoting proletarian democracy to the full that the above provisions are made.

Of course, in the absence of centralized guidance democracy will lose the correct orientation and go astray. In this sense, to impair centralism is to impair democracy. Due to the influence of the "gang of four," there really are people in our Party who are addicted to bourgeois factionalism and have a liking for indiscipline and for anarchy and who prefer to remain free from constraint by the Party organization and the leadership. They don't understand that no factional organization or activity is permissible in the Communist Party and that a Communist must never take part in but must oppose any factional organization or activity which splits the Party, and that the Communist Party must have not only democracy, but also and still more so, centralism; they don't understand that democracy inside the Party is intended to strengthen discipline and enhance its fighting power rather than to weaken discipline and reduce its fighting power; and they don't understand that the proletarian party's iron discipline is one of the basic conditions for defeating the bourgeoisie and achieving victory in the revolution. Chairman Mao said, "Discipline is the guarantee for the implementation of the line. Without discipline, it is impossible for the Party to lead the masses and the army in conducting a victorious struggle." Since our Party has to lead the people of all nationalities in conducting the socialist revolution and construction in a country with a population of 800 million and in constantly consolidating and strengthening the dictatorship of the proletariat, how can it manage without an iron discipline? Lenin said, "Whoever weakens ever so little the iron discipline of the party of the proletariat (especially during the time of its dictatorship), actually aids the bourgeoisie against the proletariat."

It is imperative to strengthen Party discipline in order to ensure our Party's unity of action. In the chapter on Organizational System of the Party, the draft stresses, "The whole Party must observe democratic centralist discipline: The individual is subordinate to the organization, the minority is subordinate to the majority, the lower level is subordinate to the higher level, and the entire Party is subordinate to the Central Committee." A Communist must never take a liberalist attitude towards the resolutions of Party organizations and the decisions of the leadership, carrying out what is to his liking and refusing to carry out what is not, and must never overtly agree but covertly oppose, feigning compliance while acting differently. Chairman Mao indicated long ago, "One requirement of Party discipline is that the minority should submit to the majority. If the view of the minority has been rejected, it must support the decision passed by the majority. If necessary, it can bring up the matter for reconsideration at the next meeting, but apart from that it must not act against the decision in any way." We must strengthen education in discipline throughout the Party. After the Second Plenary Session of the Ninth Central Committee Chairman Mao urged us time and again to sing the song The Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention and repeatedly stressed, "Educate the soldiers, the cadres, the masses, the Party members and the people in the Three Main Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention." When we obey orders in all our actions and march in step we will win victory. All Party members, especially the Party's leading cadres at all levels, must consciously observe Party discipline.

To safeguard the principle of the Party's democratic centralism and Party discipline and to correct and prevent all acts that may jeopardize the relations between the Party and the masses, it is further stipulated in the draft that the Central Committee of the Party, local Party committees at the county level and upwards and Party committees in the army units at the regimental level and upwards should set up commissions for inspecting discipline. These commissions, at all levels, are to be elected by the Party committees at the respective levels and function under their leadership. Their task is to strengthen Party members' education on discipline, be responsible for checking on the observance of discipline by Party members and Party cadres, and struggle against all breaches of Party discipline and handle appeals and accusations by Party members as well as accusations by non-Party people against Party members.

Chairman Mao said, "Our aim is to create a political situation in which we have both centralism and democracy, both discipline and freedom, both unity of will and personal ease of mind and liveliness, and thus to promote our socialist revolution and socialist construction, make it easier to overcome difficulties, build a modern industry and modern agriculture more rapidly and make our Party and state more secure and better able to weather storm and stress." So long as we earnestly practise democratic centralism, give full scope to democracy and exercise centralism on the basis of extensive democracy, we can certainly create the political situation Chairman Mao spoke of. We can do so not only throughout the Party, but also throughout the army and among the people of all nationalities.