Chapter 77 Martial fighting escalated to full-scale civil war 1967-1968

Journalist: “How did the Red Guards’ armed struggle escalate into a full-scale civil war?”

Mao: “As early as July 18, 1967, in Wuhan, I said, ‘Why not arm the workers and students?’ When I heard that the steelworkers had done a good job repairing the facilities, I said I wanted to go and have a look.

On July 22, 1967, Jiang Qing met with representatives from Henan and said, ‘We should use cultural attack and violent defend against armed forces.’ Jiang Qing told me about it, and I agreed with what she said.

On August 4, 1967, while I was on a car tour of the Bund in Shanghai, I saw soldiers from the General Bureau armed with spears and clubs. When I returned and watched the documentary footage of the General Bureau’s smashing and looting, I found it very interesting. I praised the bravery of those on the ladder and said we should arm 100,000 Shanghai workers, starting with clubs and later with guns.

On August 4, 1967, I wrote a letter to Jiang Qing, saying we should arm the leftists and establish a second armed force. I pointed out that at that time, more than 75% of the military supported the rightists, so we needed to arm the leftists and exercise mass dictatorship.”

Journalist: “You issued so many high-level instructions, all emphasizing the need for arming and fighting. It’s no wonder the fighting escalated into a full-scale conflict, right?”

Mao: “Yes, once my instructions were given, the whole country sprang into action, and as a result, both sides started arming themselves. Both the leftists and the rightists were armed, with over a million guns distributed in total. The armed struggle escalated across the board, transitioning from spears and clubs to real firearms.”

Journalist: “Over a million guns were distributed?”

Mao: “Yes, the situation in Chongqing was particularly prominent during the armed struggle events in various provinces. From July 1, 1967, to the end of July 1968, there were almost daily clashes of various scales. The sound of gunfire filled the air, and the smoke of gunpowder pervaded. The common people lived in fear.

Zhou Enlai and Xie Fuzhi both sternly condemned the armed conflicts multiple times and demanded an immediate halt to the fighting, but they were unable to stop it or cool it down. The reason was that both Jiang Qing and I had given instructions beforehand.

On August 8, 1967, the two factions in Chongqing engaged in armed conflict on the Yangtze River. Three modified gunboats were deployed, with continuous artillery fire sinking three ships and damaging twelve others, leading to the interruption of Yangtze River shipping. Those participating in the fighting claimed to be ‘fighting for Chairman Mao’ and were willing to sacrifice their lives. Twenty-four people were killed, and over a hundred were injured. The youngest casualty was a junior high scho ol student who was only 14-15 years old. When I saw these reports on the armed conflicts, I felt secretly pleased, but I never made any public statements about it.”

Journalist: “Chongqing developed into the Yangtze River War, you are happy to watch the battle?”

Mao: “Yes, August 18-20, 1967, Chongqing, the two factions of large-scale armed struggle, the use of Sanchi guns, howitzers, anti-aircraft machine guns, tanks, both sides died more than 100 people.

August 22, 1967, Chongqing, two factions fighting for the high ground, 22 people died, dozens of people injured, damaged 7 houses, copied and smashed organs, 17 stores, 34 residents, snatched all kinds of materials and equipment food more than 2,600 kilograms.”

Journalist: “Wow, in Chongqing’s armed struggle, did the military deploy heavy weapons?” Mao: “Yes, on July 16, 1968, the Chongqing Rebel Faction’s armed struggle team intercepted a military train at Longchang Shiyan Bridge on the Chengdu-Chongqing Railway and used firepower to seize and loot five train cars full of military supplies destined for Vietnam.”

Journalist: “The armed struggle in Chongqing seemed unstoppable. How did you manage to bring it under control?”

Mao: “I mobilized the military. By the end of July 1968, the Chongqing Worker Propaganda Team and the Military Propaganda Team entered schools, causing the student rebel factions to gradually withdraw from the political stage. Middle school students went to the mountains and countryside, and the deeply involved 54th Army was also transferred to Yunnan. The armed struggle in Chongqing began to calm down.

On August 22, 1968, the first group of 4,500 people who had fled the armed conflicts returned to Chongqing. In the following days, thousands of refugees returned to Chongqing every day.

On October 15, 1968, the two major factions announced their dissolution, marking the basic end of the armed struggle and internal conflict.”
Journalist: “How extensive were the losses in the armed struggle in Chongqing?”

Mao: “According to the statistics from the Chongqing Public Security Bureau in 1971, from July 1, 1967, to the end of July 1968, there were 22 major armed conflict incidents, resulting in the killing of 1,737 people after being captured. Over 3,000 people died directly from the armed struggle, and over 10,000 people were injured. Houses and machinery were destroyed, causing transportation disruptions and factory shutdowns. The losses were incalculable.”

Journalist: “Was the armed struggle in Guangxi more widespread?”

Mao: “Yes, the armed struggle in Guangxi gained nationwide notoriety with guns and military ammunition. Since March 1967, Guangxi has been divided into two factions, one supporting Secretary Wei Guoqing and the other opposing him. The struggle between the two factions became increasingly intense in the summer of 1967. In June, the pro-Wei faction organized several instances of mobilizing farmers to besiege the anti-Wei faction, resulting in a large number of casualties. Since Jiang Qing and I issued instructions to arm the leftists and use cultural attack to defend against armed forces, the armed struggle further escalated.

On August 18, 1967, over 300 members of the anti-Wei faction looted over 4,000 artillery shells intended for Vietnam.”

Journalist: “The two factions fought hard to separate?”

Mao: “Yes, from 12 p.m. on May 5, 1968, to 4 a.m. on the 6th, more than 3,800 people from the support Wei faction, 45 cars and one train were deployed to the arsenal to rob 7,000 guns, including 479 light machine guns, 48 anti-aircraft machine guns, and 1.2 million rounds of ammunition.

On May 21, 1968, several thousand people from the anti-Wei faction robbed 11,888 boxes of bullets from aid to Vietnam at Liuzhou Station.

On June 4, 1968, 3,500 people from the pro-Wei faction, for the second time, came to the military zone and robbed 1,859 guns, 860 guns and more than 1 million rounds of bullets.”

Journalist: “Both factions looted arms?”

Mao: “Yes, on June 19, 1968, the supporters of the Wei faction attacked the anti-Wei faction stronghold, killing 62 people and throwing their bodies into the river.

On June 23-24, 1968, the two factions fought on the water, and more than 40 boats were hit by artillery fire and caught fire and burned.

On July 16, 1968, the supporters of the Wei faction arrested more than 280 people from the anti-Wei faction and killed 33 people.”

Journalist: “The two factions also developed into a big battle on the water?”

Mao: “Yes, July 17-18, 1968, the two factions in Nanning Liberation Road armed fighting, gunfire artillery war, throwing petrol bombs, stores, houses on fire. A batch of boats were shot and burned, and the boats were loaded with more than 1,400 barrels of gasoline, which caught fire and burned a total of 166 boats with more than 3,600 tons of materials inside.

On July 18, 1967, the two factions opened fire in the streets, thousands of people put into the battle, several streets caught fire, a sea of fire.”

Journalist: “How many streets were on fire? The cilivilians suffered?”

Mao: “Yes, July 28, 1968, to August 8, more than 30,000 people in support of the Wei faction, using mortars, rocket-propelled grenades, explosive kits, siege anti-Wei faction, killing 6,000-10,000 people. The bodies were cleaned up for 3 days, with more than 5,000 bodies in the spark field. Some were thrown into the waste coal mine pit, some into the river. Hid into the underground air defense project thousands of people, was released into the water to attack, a large number of people were drowned. 10 days of armed struggle, burned 33 streets, more than 2,000 stores and houses, more than 10,000 families, homeless.”

Journalist: “Wow, killing 10,000 people? The crematorium was too busy?”

Mao: “Yes, in August-October 1968, the Branch-Wei faction held an exhibition of the results of the armed struggle, which was on display for 52 days, with live people on display, locked in iron cages and hung with black tags, like beasts for viewing.”

Journalist: “An exhibition of captive live people? That’s unbelievable, right?”