The Washington Star-News published December 16, 1973, this report by Henry S. Bradsher from Hong Kong: "An argument is going on in (Red) China on whether violence is a permissible way to oppose wrong policies, highlighting the fragile nature of the present political situation. The argument in newspaper and magazine articles is part of an increasingly strident clash between a radical minority associated with Mao Tse-tung and the moderate majority of (Red) China's Communist party and government administrators grouped around Chou En-lai. The radicals are seeking to justify use of violence in a way that harks back to the Cultural Revolution. The moderate are arguing that a resort to violence is both undesirable and unjustified against a majority.
"Behind this lie a number of policy differences. Mao, 'chairman' of the Chinese Communist party, has in the last few weeks been identified with those opposing 'Premier' Chou's governmental policies more clearly than when the dispute began to develop a year ago.
"The basic point of dispute is who controls policy formulation and whether (Red) China is following true Maoist Communist ways or sliding into 'revisionism' that leads back toward capitalism. Radicals who contend that revisionism is a major danger in today's (Red) China are seeking through attacks on Chou's establishment to gain control of policy.
"This dispute has blocked the holding of a National Peoples Congress (NPC), or figurehead parliament, whose session is long overdue. Chou said in August it would be 'most near' in time and Chinese (Communist) sources said November, but nothing has been seen of it yet. An NPC session would establish government policies. The radicals seem to be fighting against giving Chou an endorsement and are delaying it. There have been few signs within recent days that enough of a compromise between radicals and moderates might be emerging to permit an NPC session, however. On the other hand there is more direct argument in the press as moderates become bolder in answering attacks by radicals which have been appearing regularly since early August.
"Chou himself has been keeping a low profile lately. Mao's wife, Chiang Ching, dominated a photograph last week while Chou appeared in a secondary position, for instance. Chou outranks her but she is presumably a leader of a radical group.
"Chou has failed to appear at all in some official photographs of occasions when he was present. This might be his reputed foxiness in avoiding too much prominence that offers critics a large target, but it might well be because he is in trouble.
"A new Mao quotation which appeared last August Justifies 'going against the tide.' Radicals have used this to contend that erroneous policies now are being followed but can rightfully be opposed by a minority.
"'Truth invariably lies not in the hands of the majority but in the minority,' according to a forceful statement of the radical position last month. Mao was associated with this by recalling times 40 years ago when he led a minority against 'the majority of the (party) leadership.'
"The latest issue of the party's journal, Red Flag, contains a strong moderate reply, claiming that Mao believes in party discipline and that the disciplined thing to do is to respect the majority. This seems to be using Mao out of context of the current dispute, however.
"Some provincial broadcasts have linked 'going against the tide' with the slogan which authorized the Red Guards' violent outbursts during the Cultural Revolution. 'To rebel is justified.' But more direct suggestions of impending violence have come in several articles.
"From Shanghai, the main bastion of Radicals, there has been a theme of violence sometimes being needed to overcome those in power who are following incorrect policies. Confucius, the ancient Chinese philosopher-politician, has been denounced for trying to suppress violence that was being used in a right cause. The latest issue of Red Flag argues in reply that democratic methods can be used instead of violence because, it claims, 80 or 90 percent of the people are on the right side. It is wrong, it indicates, for a small minority to resort to force." (Partial text)
The Washington Star-News published December 21, 1973, this additional report by Bradsher:
"'It's strange,' the European diplomat said, shaking his head, 'but they just don't want to know.'
"'We tell both our foreign ministry and our embassy in Peking that the evidence looks to us in Hong Kong like Chou En-lai's in trouble, the radicals attacking him, power struggle getting worse, but they just don't want to hear it,' he said.
"'They seem to find it too uncomfortable. After all, my government's (Red) China policy is based on doing business with Chou, and so they don't want to face the possibility of change.'
"The diplomat's complaint is a widely heard one. It is also indicative of a curious situation which has arisen in the last six months among diplomatic and journalistic specialists in (Red) China.
"A slowly increasing number of specialists is convinced that the available evidence - most of which has to be read between the lines of Chinese (Communist) newspapers - points to an intensifying power struggle.
"They see similarities in the issues involved with the Cultural Revolution of 1966-69, although the overt forms of conflict produced by this new conflict may be different from a simple repetition of that tumultuous and destructive period.
"The similar elements are presumed to be 'Chairman' Mao Tse-tung's disagreement with many aspects of domestic policy and his desire to change both policy and persons implementing it, the development of new pressure groups for use against the existing establishment, and the slow build-up of indirect criticism to rally opinion for an open fight.
"A number of other specialists, however, deny that available information points toward a power struggle.
"It is the nature of the Chinese Communists, these specialists argue, to be continually hunting for and criticizing alleged backsliders from the Maoist faith in their midst. Such current activity does not mean a power struggle or that Chou is under attack, they contend.
"Beyond this skepticism lies emotionalism. It is summed up by one Peking-based diplomat's refusal to believe Mao could be behind attacks on Chou because the 'premier' is 'a national treasure - he's too valuable to damage.'
"Chou, now 75, is the only 'premier' the 'People's Republic' has had in its 24 years of existence. But the idea that he is indispensable is more popular in the outside world than in (mainland) China, where Chou has been challenged on several occasions.
"The perception of mounting trouble in (Red) China is noticeably stronger in Hong Kong than among foreigners in Peking.
"The nuances can be subtle. When an article in the Peking press quotes Chou, a diplomat there might jump on it as proof that Chou is still solidly in command, but a Hong Kong specialist might regard it as a sarcastic use of Chou's words against him in the context of the over-all article.
"When Chou says one thing on foreign policy but the Communist Party newspaper, People's Daily, says another, the interpretation that Chou's policy is being sniped at by radicals can be answered with the argument that Chou himself is cleverly following a two-level approach.
"In fact, however, Chou has lately come around to sounding more like People's Daily in criticizing the United States on Vietnam. This is taken by the power struggle school as a sign of his yielding to pressure. (Partial text)
Los Angeles Times - Storm on the mainland
The Los Angeles Times published December 23, 1973, this report by Robert S. Elegant from Hong Kong: "The moderate forces of 'Premier' Chou En-lai have launched a vigorous counterattack against the 'extreme leftists' who have been seeking to undermine the moderates' position. Calling for conciliation, the Chou forces have also threatened dire retribution.
"Still in firm control of the central organs of governmental and communist party power, the moderates have mounted a flanking attack against their enemies. They have not replied directly to the extremists' charges that they represented a recrudescence of 'semi-feudal, capitalist and fascist' tendencies.
"Instead, they have attempted to defuse the issues raised by the leftists by reducing them to an abstract, academic controversy rather than an immediate political struggle.
"The same strategy was originally attempted by the 'men in power' who were the first targets of the great proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1969). Their enemies attacked them under the pretense of initiating a literary debate - and they attempted to keep the debate academic.
"But they failed. And the convulsive political struggles of the Cultural Revolution followed, ending with all organs of established power virtually destroyed.
"Analysts are naturally cautious in making projections. But they feel that, at this stage, Chou has a much better chance of succeeding with his evasive tactics than did the men who were attacked in 1966.
"Instead of merely trying to deflect the swords of his enemies, Chou is evoking the powers of the 'party center' and, implicitly, the all-powerful military. Besides, he is attempting to preempt the powerful force of the students, who were the vanguard of the cultural revolution.
"Several recent articles in the Peking People's Daily, the official organ of the Communist party, have led to those general conclusions. The most significant was attributed to 'the criticism groups' of Peking and Ching-hua Universities, (Red) China's two premier institutions of higher learning, both in the capital.
"The article made a main point.
"It specifically linked the current campaign against the thought of the sage Confucius with continuing denunciation of former Field Marshal Lin Piao - the heir designate to Communist party 'chairman' Mao Tse-tung until he died, reportedly in a plane' crash as he fled after an abortive coup d'état in September, 1971. The anti-Confucius campaign, the article said, was of exactly the same nature as the anti-Lin campaign.
"Thus did the moderates seek to 'turn the enemies' spearheads' away from 'Premier' Chou, who had previously been all but named as the real target of the anti-Confucius campaign. Lin is the true target the article said, thus implying that the target could not be Lin's enemy Chou. (Full text)
The Los Angeles Times published December 7, 1973, this additional report from Elegant:
"Voices calling for a new revolt in (Red) China are rising in volume with the formation of a new alliance between the 'left extremists' in the country's largest city and its major provincial industrial center.'
"'Premier' Chou En-lai is still fending off assaults against established authority. But the rebellious faction is intensifying its attacks and seeking to form a powerful alliance of the discontented before the passing from the political scene of Communist Party 'Chairman' Mao Tse-tung. The extremists are also apparently wooing (Red) China's all-powerful provincial military commanders.
"A joint editorial of two papers in Shanghai, the traditional stronghold of the extremists, has just been reprinted in the daily newspaper of Heilungchiang province in Manchuria, China's Ruhr. The repetition is highly significant, since Manchuria is the domain of Gen. Chen Hsi-lien, one of (Red) China's three most powerful military men. Besides one of the Shanghai papers was the local organ of the Peoples Liberation Army.
"The editorial's republications and broadcast by the Heilungchiang Provincial radio station demonstrate strong connections between the two centers of power - Shanghai and Manchuria. In addition, it indicates that contention between moderates and extremists is growing more obvious throughout (Red) China.
"As a Hong Kong editor well-connected in Peking put it: 'There is definitely a trend.'
"A 'trend' in Peking's special vocabulary means a major political movement.
"The editorial, widely disseminated, commented on 'remarks' made by an obscure graduate of the Shanghai Normal School. He called for a new struggle against the conservative forces that have been revealed 'to have spread the poison of revisionism, while demonstrating the stubborn persistence of the capitalist line in education.'
"The recent graduate also urged 'revolutionary teachers and students' to neglect - or quit their classrooms in order to 'concentrate on politics' and to begin sticking up 'big character posters.' The cessation of classes and the posting of violent attacks against education and governmental authorities marked the onset of the destructive Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution.
"The 'remarks' by graduate Liu Li-hwa were 'recorded' before his graduation - a most unlikely honor to bestow on the ruminations of an undistinguished under graduate. Their sudden and widespread reappearance demonstrates not only that the extremists are stepping up their attacks, but also that they possess a high degree of organization. Moreover, the demonstrated linkage between Shanghai and Manchuria could be duplicated elsewhere.
"Liu Li-hwa's 'remarks' are themselves a puerile complaint against discrimination by 'old-line teachers' who stressed study and academic achievement as the criteria for students, rather than good proletarian class backgrounds and a high degree of political consciousness combined with political activism. Liu charged that 'assignments' to jobs after graduation were made by a small academically oriented group. He also noted that he was ridiculed because he had not studied classical Chinese, normally a prerequisite for a teacher of the Chinese language.
"The very triviality of his 'remarks; except for the three major points, indicates how well organized is the present campaign. The present 'movement against the tide (of authority)' was initiated by a similar letter of complaint from a student in Manchuria. Liu's 'remarks' accelerate that movement.
"In neither case was wide republication and broadcasting meaningful unless major political effect was intended. In neither case was such broad dissemination possible without a high degree of organization.
"(Red) China specialists are also busy reading their 'tea leaves' - the appearances and movements of major personalities. They have tentatively concluded that the extremists are attempting to erode Chou En-lai's influence with the generals who control provincial governments through their command of the local garrisons.
"At this stage, responsible specialists do not wish to overstate that 'trend.' They acknowledge that their conclusion is highly speculative.
"But, they say, the only way the extremists can really hope to attain power is by splitting Chou En-lai and the generals. And, the specialists add, power is the goal of the complex maneuvering now going on throughout (Red) China." (Full Text)
New York Times - Rural movement.
The New York Times published December 2, 1973, this report by Joseph Lelyveld from Hong Kong: "A major radical campaign punctuated by dire warnings against 'capitalist tendencies' and 'sabotage by the class enemy; appears to be getting under way in the (Red) Chinese countryside.
"A broadcast this week from Hunan Province called for mass movements to carry out 'agricultural capital construction in a big way; along the lines of the Great Leap Forward campaign 15 years ago, when (Red) China's huge population was utilized and thrown into a series of frenzied building and production programs.
"It said that rural progress in (Red) China had been slowed by such remnants of the 'small peasant economy' as 'only considering the present and not the future' and 'lack of great ambition.' As a result, the broadcasts said, (Red) China has moved forward in 'the small paces of women hobbling with bound feet.'
"The time has come, it declared in tones of unusual militancy, to 'liberate our ideology in a big way' and 'overthrow all indications of old systems and the 'private ownership concept.' Only last March, in what was then interpreted as a sign of moderation in (Red) Chinese policies, the Hunan Revolutionary Committee called for prompt payment of material rewards to peasants raising goats and poultry for private profit.
"The themes of the Hunan broadcast have been emphasized in broadcasts monitored here from at least six other provinces in the last 10 days. The broadcasts generally called for mobilization of the traditional lower classes of the (Red) Chinese countryside the 'poor and lower-middle peasants' - and a renewal of 'revolutionary mass criticism,' especially against Communist party functionaries who faltered.
"'The fact that the class enemies dare to conduct sabotage in some localities and that capitalist forces can emerge there,' a broad cast from Kwangtung asserted, 'is directly connected with the mental outlook of some of the cadres in the countryside.'
"It is necessary 'to solve the question of who the leadership group is,' it said. Another Kwangtung broadcast alluded to party officials who were 'dealt blows' during the Cultural Revolution which was launched in 1966, but still pursue 'unhealthy styles of work because they lack ideals and are afraid of difficulties and hardship.'
"For four months now there has been an intensifying revival of the themes of the Cultural Revolution, which has been widely interpreted as evidence of renewed political struggle within (Red) China.
"Until now, the focus of the radical campaigns seemed to be the cities, where a new emphasis was placed on organizing industrial workers into armed militia units, and the universities, where there have been esoteric denunciations of Confucius and other ancient figures who were alleged to have paved the way for the disgraced Liu Shao-chi and Lin Piao
"The meaning and aim of these campaigns has been a matter of debate among political analysts here. Those who believe that (Red) China may be on the verge of new convulsions, after a hiatus of several years, will find evidence to support that interpretation in the extension of the radical themes to rural issues.
"Indeed, some of the recent broadcasts seem to be dropping unmistakable hints that a broad ideological drive is being carefully orchestrated." (Full text)