Chapter 68 January Storm: Comprehensive Seizure of Power 1967

Journalist: “What happened with your seizure of power on January 1?”

Mao: “On December 26, 1966, during my birthday banquet, I said that this great revolution should be extended to the workers and peasants, wishing for nationwide comprehensive class struggle.

On January 8, 1967, I convened a meeting with Chen Boda, Kang Sheng, Jiang Qing, and others to discuss the seizure of power by the rebels in Shanghai’s Wenhui Daily on the 4th and the leftists in the Liberation Daily on the 6th. I said that this was a nationwide issue, and I supported their rebellion. It was a revolution where one class overthrows another. When Shanghai rises, there is hope for the whole country.

On January 10, 1967, I instructed the Central Committee to send a congratulatory telegram to the rebel factions in Shanghai and called on the whole country to learn from Shanghai.

On January 16, 1967, during an expanded meeting of the Politburo, I said that it was good for the leftists to rise and seize power, to establish their own regime, with the military’s assistance. Taking over was good, they only needed to handle political affairs and not interfere with operational matters. The original personnel should continue handling affairs while they focused on supervision. However, as it developed, they actually took control of both political and operational matters, achieving comprehensive seizure of power.”

Journalist: “Comprehensive seizure of power was a series of instructions from you?”

Mao: “Yes, under my call for comprehensive seizure of power, provinces across the country began seizing power one after another. On January 14, 1967, Shanxi seized power. On January 25, Guizhou seized power. On January 27, Shandong seized power. On January 28, Beijing seized power. On January 31, Heilongjiang seized power.

During the seizure of power, the rebel factions started to split. The “Red Revolutionary Committee” in Shanghai’s colleges and universities, on January 24, had over ten teams entered Shanghai’s government offices, seize all the official seals, kidnap Xu Jingxian, and attack Zhang Chunqiao and Yao Wenyuan.

On January 29, 1967, I instructed not to target Zhang Chunqiao and Yao Wenyuan as the objects of struggle. The “Red Revolutionary Committee” collapsed under tremendous pressure and faced repression, with 2,500 people being persecuted, 5 people being forced to death, and 6 people driven to insanity. Many were disabled due to physical violence.”

Journalist: “With the comprehensive seizure of power, did the rebel factions split, and did you support one faction while attacking another, resulting in a lot of persecution and casualties?”

Mao: “Yes, on January 31, 1967, the People’s Daily and Hongqi published an editorial titled ‘The Struggle of the Proletarian Revolutionary Faction in Seizing Power,’ which I personally edited and released. I said that we cannot have reformism, we cannot have a merger of two factions, and we cannot have a peaceful transition. The old machinery must be completely smashed to create new forms.”

According to my instructions, on February 5, 1967, the Shanghai People’s Commune was officially established, and the sign of ‘Shanghai Municipal People’s Government’ was taken off and smashed, and replaced by the big sign of ‘Shanghai People’s Commune.’ The city celebrated with a million-person parade. I admired the Paris Commune, and my delusion of being the Communist King of the world came back. I said that I would be an official and a citizen, a military student, a military worker, a military peasant, and a military citizen, and I would eliminate the social division of labor, implement the supply system, eliminate commodity production and commodity exchange, and make the natural economy self-sufficient, with no distinction between party and government and a dictatorship of the masses. In other words, I was the dictator, because the masses listened to my supreme instructions. But the Paris Commune abolished the standing army and armed the masses in its place, I do not agree, the army is my lifeblood and cannot be touched.”

Journalist: “Oh, the seizure of power, you want to smash the people’s government sign and replace it with a people’s commune? To implement the dictatorship of the masses?”

Mao: “Yes, on February 12, 1967, Zhang Chunqiao and Yao Wenyuan came back to Beijing to see me. I affirmed the work in Shanghai and also considered establishing a Beijing Commune. However, it involved a wide range of issues, including the entire national system, constitutional amendments, and international recognition. I said, ‘Shanghai should revert back and be called the ‘Revolutionary Committee’ instead.’”

Journalist: “If the Paris Commune didn’t work, you changed it to the Revolutionary Committee?”

Mao: “Yes, on February 24, 1967, Shanghai, following my instructions, changed the People’s Commune to the Shanghai Revolutionary Committee, and the signs of ‘Shanghai People’s Commune’ were sent to museums.

Some people say, with power being seized everywhere, did it become madness? It paralyzed the party and government institutions, isn’t it self-destructive? Isn’t power in the hands of the party? I said, most of the party and government systems were in the hands of the Liu Shaoqi faction, so let’s seize it back first. The process of seizing power was also chaotic. Various rebel organizations and factions regarded me as their core, competing and fighting for power among themselves. Many places became divided into two factions, engaged in confrontations and evolved into armed conflicts. The Qinghai military intervened, supporting one faction, and violence erupted. On February 23, 1967, 169 people were killed, 178 were injured, and over ten thousand people were arrested. However, I am not afraid of chaos, nor am I afraid of casualties.”

Journalist: “Oh, so the rebel factions seized power, then split and engaged in armed conflicts, with the military supporting one faction and fighting against the other?”

Mao: “Yes, it became difficult to manage and control.”