File spoon-archives/marxism-general.archive/marxism-general_1997/marxism-general.9711, message 88


Date: Sun, 9 Nov 1997 17:41:04 +0100 (MET)
From: rolf.martens-AT-mailbox.swipnet.se (Rolf Martens)
Subject: M-G: What did Mao Zedong say about the 4-gang?


What did Mao Zedong say about the 4-gang?
[Posted: 09.11.97]

This is part of a debate on the Marxism-General mailing list
(M-G) managed by the Spoon Collective (see http://jefferson.
village.Virginia.EDU/~spoons/), and is also sent to newsgroups.


For the benefit of the "MIM" swindlers, who're falsifying the
recent history of China and supporting the ultra-reactionary
4-gang of the mid-1970, and also for others, I bring here
an excerpt from part 8/12 of my Info #45en. It contains criti-
cisms by Mao Zedong of those CPC leaders who in 1974-1976 de-
generated and formed the ultra-rightist 4-gang.

In order to complement the facts concerning the class struggle
in China in 1976 (or that which became particularly sharp in
that year) and concerning the standpoints of various forces in
it, I'm bringing these quotes again, which are from sources
which, as I explained in Info #45en, must be assessed as fairly
reliable at that time. Here's that earlier posting again:


UNITE! Info #45en: 8/12 4-gang history '76, pal '97
[Posted: 26.07.97]

[Continued from part 7/12]


MY DEBATE POSTING 8, 29.12.1996

Debate on China, 8: Mao criticisms of 4-Gang (in PR)
[Posted: 29.12.96]

In this posting, I'm quoting from three Peking Review articles,

"Great Historic Victory" in PR #44/76 (already reproduced in
full in my "UNITE! Info #22en" (part 7/12) on 03.11.96), 

"Launching a New Upsurge in Studying Works of Marx, Engels,
Lenin and Stalin and by Chairman Mao" in PR #52/76, and

"Crushing the 'Gang of Four' Was a Wise Decision by Chairman 
Mao" in PR #3/77.

In October 1976, when PR #44/76 was published, the Chinese 
leadership were pursuing a correct line in dealing the big blow 
against the 4-Gang and at the same time continuing the criticism
of Deng Xiaoping. They at that time had massive support by the
people and by the Marxist-Leninist parties in other countries. 
The quotes in PR #44/76 most likely are true.

Shortly afterwards however, in November, they started to abandon
the correct line and more and more went together with Dengs' 
clique, overthrowing socialism in China. Towards the end of 
1978, a bourgeois dictatorship had been established there. 

The PR accordingly became less and less trustworthy. But I don't
see much reason to doubt the correctness of the quotes (in part 
the same as those earlier) in PR #52/76 or #3/77 either, since 
it must have been known to not so few what Mao Zedong actually 
had said or not said at those CPC meetings.


First, excerpts from PR #44/76:

'Wang-Chang-Chiang-Yao had long formed a cabal, the "gang of 
four", engaged in factional activities to split the Party. The 
great leader Chairman Mao was aware of this long ago and severe-
ly criticized and tried to educate them again and again. And he
made some arrangements to solve this problem.'

'Chairman Mao criticized them on July 17, 1974, saying: *"You'd 
better be careful; don't let yourselves become a small faction 
of four."*' 

'Again, on December 24, Chairman Mao criticized them: *"Don't 
form factions. Those who do so will fall."*' 

'In November and December of the same year, as the central lead-
ing organs were preparing to convene the Fourth National Peop-
le's Congress, Chairman Mao said:' 

'*"Chiang Ching has wild ambitions. She wants Wang Hung-wen to 
be Chairman of the Standing Committee of the People's National 
Congress and herself to be Chairman of the Party Central Commit-
tee."*'

'On May 3, 1975, at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the 
Party Central Committee, Chairman Mao reiterated the basic prin-
ciples of "three do's and three don'ts", and warned them:'

'*"Practice Marxism-Leninism, and not revisionism; unite, and 
don't split; be open and aboveboard, and don't intrigue and con-
spire. Don't function as a gang of four, don't do it any more, 
why do you keep doing it?"*'

'That very day Chairman Mao, on this question, gave the instruc-
tion that *"if this is not settled in the first half of this 
year, it should be settled in the second half; if not this year,
then next year, if not next year, then the year after."*'


And here are some excerpts from PR #52/76 and #3/77; I'm putting
the quotes together in chronological order:

'In the days following the Tenth National Party Congress in
August, 1973, the Wang-Chang-Chiang-Yao "gang of four" intensi-
fied their underhand activities step by step.....In early 1974,
Chairman Mao initiated and led the movement to criticize Lin 
Piao and Confucius.....they [the 4-Gang] invented slogans behind
Chairman Mao's back.....and directed the spearhead of their at-
tack against Premier Chou.....In early 1974, Chairman Mao se-
verely criticized them, pointing out: *"Metaphysics, one-sided-
ness, is rampant."*'

'Because of their reactionary class nature, the Wang-Chang-
Chiang-Yao anti-Party clique had an inveterate hatred for Marx-
ist theory. They themselves did not study it at all and extreme-
ly feared that Party members and the masses would get a real 
grasp of Marxism-Leninism Mao Tsetung Thought. They tried by 
every means to sabotage the mass study movement. On March 20, 
1974, Chairman Mao, in great anger, criticized Chiang Ching, 
saying:''*"It's better if we don't see each other. You haven't 
done many of the things I talked to you about over the years. 
What's the use of seeing each other more often? The works of 
Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin are there, my works are there, 
but you simply refuse to study."*'

'It was Chairman Mao who first criticized their factional acti-
vities, calling them the "gang of four". He said on July 17,
1974: *"You'd better be careful; don't let yourselves become
a small faction of four."* *"It's hard for you, too, to mend 
your ways"*, he told Chiang Ching. On December 24 the same year, 
Chairman Mao again criticized them, saying: *"Don't form fac-
tions. Those who do so will fall."*

'Chang Chun-chiao, Yao Wen-yuan and their like who called them-
selves "Marxist theoreticians", however, only opposed empiri-
cism, not dogmatism.....Chairman Mao saw through their plots and
criticized them accordingly: *"It seems the formulation should 
be: Oppose revisionism which includes empiricism and dogmatism. 
Both revise Marxism-Leninism. Don't mention just one while omit-
ting the other."* *In my opinion, those who are criticizing em-
piricism are themselves empiricists."*

[An article in PR #50/76 has the date of this, and reports Mao
Zedong's having written it on a report on 23.04.1975. It also 
adds, as a continuation of it: *"Not many people in our Party 
really know Marxism-Leninism. Some think they know, but in fact 
know very little about it. They consider themselves always in 
the right and are ready at all times to lecture others. This in 
itself is a manifestation of a lack of knowledge of Marxism-Le-
ninism."*]

'On May 3, 1975, Chairman Mao reiterated the three basic prin-
ciples at a Political Bureau meeting, criticizing them [the 4-
Gang] for having no faith in these principles and having forgot-
ten them altogether. He sounded a warning to them:''*"Don't 
function as a gang of four. Don't do it any more. Why do you 
keep doing it? Why don't you unite with the more than 200 mem-
bers of the Party Central Committee? It is no good to keep a 
small circle of a few. It has always been no good doing so."*'

'In the presence of Chairman Mao, they said they "will go ac-
cording to Chairman Mao's instructions" while behind his back 
they continued to function as a gang. Without the slightest in-
tention of repenting, they went from bad to worse and slipped 
farther along the erroneous road.'

'Chairman Mao was thus determined to settle the problem of the 
"gang of four". In 1975, he exposed Chiang Ching further: *"Af-
ter I die, she will make trouble."* On May 3, Chairman Mao gave
an instruction on the problem of the gang, saying that *"If this
is not settled in the first half of this year, it should be 
settled in the second half; if not this year, then next year, if
not next year, then the year after."*'

Rolf M.

[So far the excerpt from "UNITE! Info #45en" part 8/12  - origi-
nally posted to M-G on 29.12.1996 as part of a debate then.]



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