A Historical Examination of the Party’s Organizational Capacity Building during the War of Resistance Against Japan

A rigorous organizational system is the strength and source of power of a Marxist political party. Among these, strong organizational capacity is of paramount importance. The Party’s organizational capacity refers to its ability to mobilize, organize, and unite Party cadres and the masses in order to implement the Party’s line, principles, and policies, manifested as guiding force, cohesive force, combat effectiveness, and appeal, all aimed at achieving its own goals. During the War of Resistance Against Japan, faced with a severe internal and external environment, the Party formulated a series of policies and measures for organizational capacity building, gradually strengthening itself, growing from small to large and from weak to strong, and playing a pivotal role in the nationwide war of resistance. Drawing on the historical experience of the Party’s organizational capacity building during the War of Resistance Against Japan holds significance for our current efforts to deeply advance the great new project of Party building in the New Era.

严密的组织体系，是马克思主义政党的优势所在、力量所在。其中，强大的组织力至关重要。党的组织力指的是党为了实现自己的目标，动员、组织和团结党员干部、人民群众以贯彻执行党的路线方针政策的引领力、凝聚力、战斗力和号召力等。抗战时期，面对严峻的党内外环境，党在组织力建设方面制定了一系列政策和措施，逐步壮大自身力量，由小变大、由弱变强，在全民族抗战中发挥了中流砥柱的作用。汲取抗战时期党的组织力建设的历史经验，对我们今天深入推进新时代党的建设新的伟大工程具有启示意义。

Establishing Lofty Organizational Goals to Highlight Guiding Force

树立崇高组织目标，凸显引领力

Lofty faith and firm convictions are the political soul of Chinese Communists. The ideals and convictions of Chinese Communists are supported by Marxism and are built upon the laws of the development of human society revealed by Marxism. Lenin once pointed out: “Only a party guided by an advanced theory can fulfill the role of an advanced fighter.” During the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Party Central Committee always attached great importance to the study of Marxist theory by Party cadres and members. At the Sixth Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee [1]1 The Wayaobu Conference (December 1935) was a key meeting of the CPC Central Committee that formulated the policy of the Anti-Japanese National United Front and opposed closed-doorism in Party recruitment., Mao Zedong pointed out, “The task of studying Marxist-Leninist theory in a comprehensive and in-depth manner is a major problem for us that urgently needs to be solved and can only be solved with great effort” (Selected Works of Mao Zedong, Vol. 2, People’s Publishing House, 1991, p. 533). To this end, the central authorities vigorously launched a study competition in Yan’an, designating Marxist books that the entire Party needed to study to improve the theoretical cultivation of the whole Party.

崇高的信仰、坚定的信念，是中国共产党人的政治灵魂。中国共产党人的理想信念以马克思主义为支撑，建立在马克思主义揭示的人类社会发展规律的基础之上。列宁曾指出：“只有以先进理论为指南的党，才能实现先进战士的作用。”抗战时期，党中央始终高度重视党员干部的马克思主义理论学习。在党的六届六中全会上，毛泽东指出，“普遍地深入地研究马克思列宁主义的理论的任务，对于我们，是一个亟待解决并须着重地致力才能解决的大问题”（《毛泽东选集》第2卷，人民出版社1991年版，第533页）。为此，中央在延安大力开展学习竞赛，指定全党需要学习的有关马克思主义书籍，提高全党理论修养。

During the study movement and important meetings in Yan’an, Party leaders such as Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi, Ren Bishi, and Chen Yun delivered reports or wrote articles including “Reform Our Study,” “On the Cultivation of Communist Party Members,” “Outline Report on the Issue of Strengthening Party Spirit,” and “How to Be a Communist Party Member.” They demanded that Party cadres and members earnestly study and research Marxist-Leninist theory and its concrete application in China, overcome non-proletarian ideologies with proletarian ideology, and establish a communist worldview. Chen Yun, then head of the Organization Department of the Central Committee, emphasized that Party members must have a spirit of sacrifice to “fight for communism to the end—until death.” He stated that whether a Party member firmly believes in communism, whether they will carry the revolution through to the end, and whether they are willing to sacrifice for communism—these questions are the “touchstone” (Chronicle of Chen Yun, Revised Edition, Vol. 1, Central Party Literature Press, 2015, pp. 258–259). This was not only a touchstone for measuring a Communist Party member but also reflected the worldview, outlook on life, and values of Communists.

毛泽东、刘少奇、任弼时、陈云等党的领导人在延安开展的学习运动和重要会议中，分别作了《改造我们的学习》《论共产党员的修养》《关于增强党性问题的报告大纲》《怎样做一个共产党员》等报告或文章，要求党员干部认真学习和研究马列主义理论及其在中国的具体运用，用无产阶级的思想意识克服非无产阶级的思想意识，树立共产主义世界观。时任中央组织部部长的陈云强调，党员要有“为共产主义奋斗到底——到死了为止”的牺牲精神，作为一名党员，是否坚定信仰共产主义，是否将革命干到底，是否愿意为共产主义而牺牲，“这些问题是试金石”（《陈云年谱》（修订本）上卷，中央文献出版社2015年版，第258~259页）。这既是衡量一名共产党员的试金石，也体现了共产党人的世界观、人生观和价值观。

During the War of Resistance Against Japan, translating the Marxist ideals and convictions into practical struggle included formulating a correct political line and ensuring its implementation and execution organizationally, persisting in the war of resistance to the end, and achieving national liberation. In August 1937, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee proposed at the Luochuan Conference [2]2 The Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region was the first anti-Japanese base area established behind enemy lines by the CPC, covering parts of Shanxi, Chahar, and Hebei provinces. that the key to victory in the War of Resistance lay in achieving a comprehensive nationwide war of resistance. The Party, fearless of sacrifice, should stand most actively on the front line of struggle, leading the broad masses of soldiers and civilians to become the core of the nationwide war of resistance. At the same time, Mao Zedong’s “On Protracted War” became the ideological beacon guiding the nationwide war of resistance toward victory, strengthening the confidence of the entire nation in the inevitable triumph of the resistance. From late 1939 to early 1940, he successively published works such as “Introducing The Communist” and “On New Democracy,” proposing and elaborating on the theory of new democracy. Subsequently, he further elaborated on this in articles such as “On Coalition Government” and “On the People’s Democratic Dictatorship.” Mao Zedong unequivocally put forward the theory of new democracy, systematically answering questions about China’s future and the revolutionary path, and proposing far-sighted strategic thinking. This enabled the entire Party and the broad masses to clearly understand the laws of development of the Chinese revolution and the prospects of the War of Resistance. At the critical historical juncture of national peril, the Party steadfastly adhered to Marxist ideals and convictions, unifying the beliefs and actions of Party members under the lofty goal of fighting for the communist cause to the end, shouldering the mission of national liberation, generating a powerful organizational guiding force, and also demonstrating the value pursuit and goal orientation of the Party’s organizational capacity building.

抗战时期，将马克思主义的理想信念落实到现实斗争中，就包括制定正确的政治路线，并从组织上保证政治路线的贯彻和执行，坚持抗战到底，取得民族解放。1937年8月，中共中央政治局在洛川会议上提出，抗战胜利的关键在于实现全面的全民族抗战，党要不怕牺牲，最积极地站在斗争的最前线，带领广大军民成为全国抗战的核心。同时，毛泽东撰写的《论持久战》成为指导全民族抗战走向胜利的思想灯塔，坚定了全国人民抗战必胜的信心。1939年底1940年初，他先后发表了《〈共产党人〉发刊词》《新民主主义论》等著述，提出并阐述了新民主主义理论。此后，他在《论联合政府》《论人民民主专政》等文章中又作了进一步的阐述。毛泽东旗帜鲜明地提出了新民主主义理论，对中国前途和革命道路问题作了系统的回答，提出了具有远见卓识的战略思考，使全党和广大人民清楚地认识到中国革命的发展规律和抗战前景。在民族危亡的历史关头，党始终坚持马克思主义的理想信念，将党员的信念与行动统一于为共产主义事业奋斗到底的崇高目标中，担负起民族解放的使命，产生了强大的组织引领力，也彰显了党的组织力建设的价值追求与目标指向。

Building a Rigorous Organizational System to Enhance Cohesive Force

构建严密组织体系，增强凝聚力

During the War of Resistance Against Japan, the internal and external environment faced by the Party was quite complex. It was necessary to establish a rigorous organizational system based on changes in the wartime environment and conditions, maintain unity and cohesion within the Party organization, and continuously strengthen the Party’s organizational cohesive force.

抗战时期，党面临的内外部环境相当复杂，需要根据战争环境和条件的变化，建立严密的组织体系，维护党组织内部的团结和统一，不断增强党的组织凝聚力。

From the dimension of the organizational system, the Party’s organizational capacity is centrally embodied in the rigorous organizational system built from top to bottom and from inside to outside. Liu Shaoqi pointed out that the Chinese Communist Party is a unified organism composed of all Party members according to certain laws, a combination of Party leaders and the led, and “a unified entity formed by the Party’s brain (the central committee), Party organizations at all levels, and the broad masses of Party members and cadres according to certain laws” (Liu Shaoqi on Party Building, Central Party Literature Press, 1991, p. 457). To adapt to the harsh wartime environment and strengthen the Party’s centralized and unified leadership, in September 1942, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee made the “Decision on Unifying the Leadership of the Party in the Anti-Japanese Base Areas and Adjusting Relations Among Various Organizations,” requiring the establishment of Party-centered unified leadership in the base areas. It stipulated that the central representative organs (Central Bureau, Sub-Bureau) and Party committees at all levels (district Party committees, prefectural Party committees) were the highest leading organs in their respective regions, unifying leadership over Party, government, military, and civilian work in those regions. Grassroots Party branches were to lead and implement all Party, government, military, and civilian work, playing the role of a core fortress. Party organizations at all levels strictly implemented democratic centralism, with lower levels obeying higher levels and the entire Party obeying the Central Committee. Such institutional arrangements ensured ideological unity, consistent action, and organic coordination among central, local, and grassroots organizations, “like the arm commanding the hand, and the hand commanding the fingers,” thereby demonstrating powerful cohesive force and capacity for action.

从组织体系维度看，党的组织力集中体现在从上到下、从内到外构建起的严密组织体系上。刘少奇指出，中国共产党是由全体党员按照一定规律组织起来的统一的有机体，是党的领导者与被领导者的结合体，“是党的首脑（中央）、党的各级组织和广大党员群众依照一定规律结合起来的统一体”（《刘少奇论党的建设》，中央文献出版社1991年版，第457页）。为了适应残酷的战争环境，加强党的集中统一领导，1942年9月，中共中央政治局作出《关于统一抗日根据地党的领导及调整各组织间关系的决定》，要求根据地建立以党为中心的一元化领导，规定中央代表机关（中央局、分局）及各级党委（区党委、地委）为各地区的最高领导机关，统一对各地区党政军民工作的领导。基层党支部要领导和落实党政军民各项工作，发挥核心堡垒的作用。各级党组织严格执行民主集中制，下级服从上级，全党服从中央。这样的制度安排，使中央组织、地方组织、基层组织之间思想统一，行动一致，有机协调，“如身使臂，如臂使指”，从而展现出强大的凝聚力和行动力。

Establishing a rigorous organizational system also required strict implementation and adherence to Party discipline. After the outbreak of the nationwide War of Resistance, at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee, Mao Zedong summarized the Party’s experience in struggle over the previous seventeen years, emphasized the necessity of maintaining iron discipline, and proposed the “Four Obediences” principle [3]3 The rectification movement (1942–1944) was a Party-wide campaign to study Marxism-Leninism, correct subjectivist and sectarian tendencies, and unify ideology., namely: 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. He stressed that whoever undermined them “would cause immense damage to the Party’s unity and solidarity and to the Party’s revolutionary struggle” (Selected Important Documents Since the Founding of the Party (1921–1949), Vol. 15, Central Party Literature Press, 2011, pp. 645–646). The “Four Obediences” became the core of the Party’s organizational discipline. Based on Mao Zedong’s suggestion, the plenary session formulated detailed intra-Party regulations, adopting the “Decision on Rules and Discipline for the Work of the Central Committee,” the “Decision on Rules and Discipline for the Work of Party Organs at All Levels,” and the “Decision on the Provisional Organizational Structure of Party Committees at All Levels.” These documents, in the form of intra-Party regulations, made detailed and specific provisions on the responsibilities, authority, organizational systems, organizational principles, and organizational discipline of the Central Political Bureau, the Central Committee, the Central Bureaus and Sub-Bureaus, and Party organizations at all levels, emphasizing that individual interests must be subordinate to the interests of the Party. Party discipline was also reflected in uniformity: whether Central Committee members or ordinary Party members, whether old Party members or new Party members, all had to abide by discipline. For example, the Central Party Affairs Committee published in Liberation the expulsion of Liu Ligong from Party membership. The General Political Department’s Party Affairs Committee published in The Communist the expulsion of Liu Zhenqiu and Zhou Shiyuan from Party membership, the suspension of Tang Punong’s Party membership, and the imposition of a severe final warning on Song Shilun and a reprimand on Chen Bojun. Strict enforcement of Party discipline enabled the entire Party to unite under unified will, unified action, and unified discipline, becoming an organized whole and forming a powerful organizational cohesive force.

建立严密的组织体系，还必须严格执行和遵守党的纪律。全民族抗战爆发后，在党的六届六中全会上，毛泽东总结了十七年来党的斗争的经验，强调坚持铁的纪律的必要性，提出“四个服从”原则，即个人服从组织，少数服从多数，下级服从上级，全党服从中央，并强调谁破坏了它们，“谁就给了党的统一团结与党的革命斗争以极大损害”（《建党以来重要文献选编（1921—1949）》第15册，中央文献出版社2011年版，第645~646页）。“四个服从”成为党的组织纪律的核心。根据毛泽东的建议，全会制定了详细的党内法规，通过了《关于中央委员会工作规则与纪律的决定》《关于各级党部工作规则与纪律的决定》《关于各级党委暂行组织机构的决定》。这些文件以党内法规形式对中央政治局、中央委员会、各中央局及中央分局、各级党组织的职责权限、组织制度、组织原则和组织纪律作出了详细而具体的规定，强调个人利益服从党的利益。党的纪律还体现在统一上，不管是中央委员，还是一般党员，不管是老党员，还是新党员，都要遵守纪律。例如，中央党务委员会在《解放》上公布开除刘力功的党籍。总政治部党务委员会在《共产党人》上公布开除刘振球、周时源的党籍、停止唐朴农的党籍，给予宋世轮严重的最后警告、陈伯钧劝告处分。严格执行党的纪律，才能使全党在统一意志、统一行动和统一纪律下团结起来，成为有组织的整体，形成强大的组织凝聚力。

Strengthening the Building of the Party Member Contingent to Demonstrate Combat Effectiveness

加强党员队伍建设，展现战斗力

Only when the Party membership ranks are strong can the Party organization have combat effectiveness. In October 1935, after the Central Red Army arrived in northern Shaanxi following the Long March, the number of Party members sharply decreased, and they were mostly concentrated in the military, which affected the activities of Party organizations. To reverse this situation, in December the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee at the Wayaobu Conference emphasized the need to oppose the tendency of closed-doorism in developing Party organizations and to expand and consolidate Party organizations. [1]1 The Wayaobu Conference (December 1935) was a key meeting of the CPC Central Committee that formulated the policy of the Anti-Japanese National United Front and opposed closed-doorism in Party recruitment.

党员队伍过硬，党的组织才有战斗力。1935年10月，中央红军经过长征到达陕北，党员人数锐减，且多集中于军队，党组织活动受到影响。为扭转这一状况，12月中共中央政治局在瓦窑堡会议上强调必须反对在发展党组织中的关门主义倾向，扩大与巩固党组织。

With the development of the War of Resistance situation, in March 1938 the Party Central Committee issued the “Resolution on Massively Developing Party Members,” stating that massively developing Party members was the Party’s “urgent and serious task” at that time. All base areas quickly implemented the central directive, expanding the Party membership ranks. By 1940, the number of Party members reached 800,000, twenty times that at the beginning of the nationwide War of Resistance. The achievements in Party organizational development during this period are worthy of recognition. All base areas generally strengthened Party leadership, laying a strong foundation for the Party’s organizational capacity building. Peng Zhen, speaking about the development of the Party in the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region, said that without the correct policy of boldly developing Party members, “today there would be no consolidated base areas” (Peng Zhen, *Report on the Work and Specific Policies of the Party in the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region*, Central Party School Press, 1997, p. 156). [2]2 The Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region was the first anti-Japanese base area established behind enemy lines by the CPC, covering parts of Shanxi, Chahar, and Hebei provinces.

随着抗战形势的发展，1938年3月，党中央作出《关于大量发展党员的决议》，提出大量发展党员是党目前“迫切与严重的任务”。各根据地迅速落实中央的指示，壮大党员队伍，到1940年，党员人数达80万人，是全民族抗战初期的20倍。这一时期党的组织发展所取得的成绩值得肯定，各根据地普遍加强党的领导，奠定了党的组织力建设的强大基础。彭真讲到晋察冀边区党的发展情况时说，如果没有大刀阔斧地发展党员的正确方针，“今日即不会有巩固的根据地”（彭真：《关于晋察冀边区党的工作和具体政策报告》,中共中央党校出版社1997年版，第156页）。

However, at that time, some localities, in their one-sided pursuit of the number of Party members, lowered the conditions for admitting members and adopted erroneous methods such as “shock development,” “competition campaigns,” and “collective introductions” to develop Party members. This inevitably led to the admission of some who did not meet the conditions or had low political consciousness, and even allowed bad elements to infiltrate the Party through various means to carry out sabotage activities. These phenomena in the building of the Party membership ranks not only affected the Party’s combat effectiveness but also posed great danger to the War of Resistance. To improve the quality of Party members, in August 1939 the Central Committee issued the “Decision on Consolidating the Party,” focusing efforts on rectifying and consolidating Party organizations. On the one hand, it rectified Party organizations; on the other hand, it strengthened Marxist-Leninist education, class education, and Party education for Party members. The Yan’an central directly subordinate organs and local bureaus and sub-bureaus actively implemented the central directive. In April 1940, the Shanxi-Hebei-Henan Regional Party Committee formulated a 1940 Party rectification plan, preparing to complete the rectification of all Party branches and the review of branch cadres in the entire region within about eight months. While rectifying Party organizations, combined with the study movement and the rectification movement, [3]3 The rectification movement (1942–1944) was a Party-wide campaign to study Marxism-Leninism, correct subjectivist and sectarian tendencies, and unify ideology. ideological education for Party members was carried out, institutional construction was begun, branch and group life was improved and made stricter, and Party members were mobilized to engage in criticism and self-criticism, making grassroots Party organizational life meetings a furnace for educating Party members. A cadre from the Yan’an central directly subordinate organs, after studying the Party-building course, said, “Every sentence struck deeply at his heart, striking at his own weaknesses” (*The Communist*, Issue 2, p. 46). A survey at that time on the education of cadres in the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region showed that about 95% of cadres at and below the border region level were peasants who had previously been illiterate or had attended a short-term private school. They were loyal to the Party and firm in their attitude toward resisting Japan. After receiving Party spirit education, they grew into important cadres for the Party’s grassroots work.

不过，当时也有一些地方因片面追求党员数量，降低接收党员的条件，采取“突击发展”“竞赛运动”“集体介绍”等错误方式发展党员，不可避免地导致一些不够条件、觉悟不高的人被接收到党内，甚至一些坏分子利用各种方法混入党内，进行阴谋破坏活动。党员队伍建设中存在的这些现象，不仅影响党的战斗力，而且给抗战带来极大危险。为了提高党员质量，1939年8月，中央作出了《关于巩固党的决定》，集中力量整理与巩固党的组织，一方面对党组织进行整顿，另一方面加强党员的马克思列宁主义教育、阶级教育和党的教育。延安中央直属机关和地方各局、各分局等根据中央的指示积极加以落实。1940年4月，晋冀豫区党委制定了1940年整党计划，准备在8个月左右时间里完成全区所有支部的整顿和支干的审查工作。在整顿党组织的同时，结合学习运动和整风运动，进行党员思想教育，着手制度建设，健全、严格支部、小组生活，发动党员进行批评与自我批评，使基层党组织生活会议成为教育党员的熔炉。延安中央直属机关一位干部在学习党建课程后表示，“每一句话都深深地打着他的心头，打着自己的弱点”（《共产党人》第2期，第46页）。当时对晋察冀边区干部教育情况的调查显示，边区区级以下的干部，不论党、政、军、民，有95%左右是过去目不识丁或念过短期私塾的农民，他们对党忠实，抗日态度坚定，经过党性教育后，成长为党基层工作的重要干部。

The lines, principles, and policies formulated by the Party during the War of Resistance were mainly implemented and carried out by Party cadres and members. Building the Party membership ranks into a vanguard of the proletariat that is unified in thought, politically identified, and consistent in action, maintaining the advanced nature and purity of the proletarian party, to a large extent ensured the Party’s strong organizational capacity and also became an important foundation for the Party’s organizational capacity building. During the War of Resistance, the Communist Party of China shouldered the historical mission of national liberation, and the Party membership ranks developed rapidly, reflecting a strong enterprising spirit in the Party’s organizational capacity building. At the same time, facing common problems in the development of the Party membership ranks, it was able to adjust in a timely manner, strengthen the quality of Party membership building, and improve the ability and quality of Party members, thereby ensuring the exertion of the Party organization’s combat effectiveness.

党在抗战时期制定的路线、方针、政策主要依靠党员干部贯彻执行，将党员队伍建设成为思想上统一、政治上认同、行动上一致的无产阶级先锋队，保持无产阶级政党的先进性和纯洁性，在很大程度上确保了党的强大组织力，也成为党的组织力建设的重要基础。抗战时期，中国共产党肩负民族解放的历史使命，党员队伍得到迅速发展，体现了党的组织力建设较强的进取性；同时面对党员队伍发展中存在的共性问题，能够及时调整，加强党员队伍建设的质量，提高党员的能力素质，从而保证了党组织战斗力的发挥。

Closely connect with the masses of the people, exert appeal

紧密联系人民群众，发挥号召力

To win the War of Resistance, it was necessary to fully mobilize the strength of the broad masses of the people. From the perspective of Party leadership and the Party’s organizational capacity, the ability of grassroots Party branches to mobilize and appeal to the masses is an important component of the Party’s organizational capacity. Lenin pointed out that each Party branch is “a stronghold for agitation, propaganda, and practical organizational work among the masses” (Lenin, *Complete Works*, Vol. 17, People’s Publishing House, 2017, p. 338). Chen Yun closely linked the establishment and consolidation of base areas and the growth of the Party membership ranks with mass work. He pointed out that without the masses, the army cannot expand. If the Party is divorced from the masses and becomes a party of bare sticks, it cannot survive. The development of large-scale mass movements depends on the army and the Party going deep among the masses and mobilizing them; only when the masses are mobilized can the base areas be consolidated. Mobilizing the masses is the foundation of all Party work within the base areas. In the consolidation of base areas and the struggle against the enemy, relying on the organizational advantages of Party branches, our Party mobilized and guided the broad masses to adhere to the Party’s line of resistance, implement the Party’s theory of protracted war, and carry out the strategic policy of guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines. By exerting the fortress role of Party branches and the overall synergy of the organization, it organized and gathered the strength of the masses with maximum efficiency.

要取得抗战胜利，必须充分发动广大人民群众的力量。从党的领导与党的组织力来看，基层党支部发动群众、号召群众的能力是党的组织力的重要组成部分。列宁指出，每个支部都是“在群众中进行鼓动工作、宣传工作和实际组织工作的据点”（《列宁全集》第17卷，人民出版社2017年版，第338页）。陈云将根据地的建立、巩固，党员队伍的壮大与群众工作紧紧联系在一起。他指出，没有群众，军队不能扩大。党脱离群众，成了光杆子的党，不能生存。大规模群众运动的开展，要靠军队、靠党深入群众、发动群众；只有群众发动起来，根据地才能巩固。发动群众是根据地内党的一切工作的基础。在根据地的巩固和对敌斗争中，依靠党支部的组织优势，我们党动员、引导广大群众坚持党的抗战路线、贯彻党的持久战理论、落实敌后游击战的战略方针，通过发挥党支部的堡垒作用和组织的整体合力，最大效率地组织和凝聚群众的力量。

Practice has proven that the size of the Party’s ability to appeal to the masses also depends on whether it can meet the actual needs of the broad masses and pay attention to their practical interests. Chen Yun pointed out that “the struggle for democracy and the people’s livelihood is the key to mobilizing the people in the base areas” (Chen Yun, *Collected Works*, Vol. 1, Central Party Literature Press, 2005, p. 239). To this end, economically, the Party implemented measures such as reducing rent, interest, and taxes in the base areas; led the broad military and civilian population in launching the Great Production Movement to lighten the burden on the people; and paid attention to scientifically developing the economy and helping the people develop production. Politically, it implemented the Three-Thirds System, [4]4 The Three-Thirds System was a policy in anti-Japanese base areas where, in the composition of democratic governments, Communists, non-Party leftists, and centrists each occupied one-third of the positions. conducted general elections, and respected the people’s right to vote. Culturally, it carried out winter schools, conducted literacy campaigns, and called on literary and artistic workers to go among the masses and create literary works that truly reflected the production and life of the people. The Party bravely led the people in resisting the Japanese aggressors, enabling the broad masses of the people to deeply recognize the importance of unity and common resistance to foreign aggression, to organize themselves consciously, and to unite around the Party, thereby maximizing the Party’s organizational appeal.

实践证明，党号召群众力量的大小还取决于能否满足广大群众的实际需求，重视他们的实际利益。陈云指出，“民主、民生的斗争是根据地内发动民众的钥匙”（《陈云文集》第一卷，中央文献出版社2005年版，第239页）。为此，经济上，党在根据地实行减租、减息、减税等措施；领导广大军民开展大生产运动，减轻民众的负担；注意科学发展经济，帮助群众发展生产。政治上，实行三三制，进行普选，尊重民众的选举权。文化上，开展冬学，进行扫盲，号召文艺工作者到群众中去，创作出真实反映民众生产、生活的文学作品。党勇敢地带领民众抵抗日本侵略者，使广大人民群众深刻认识到团结一致、共同御辱的重要性，自觉组织起来，团结在党的周围，从而最大化地发挥了党的组织号召力。

(Author: Xiong Qiuliang, Professor at the School of Marxism, Nanjing University; this article is a phased result of the National Social Science Fund major project “Documentary Compilation and Research on the Building of the Communist Party of China’s Membership Ranks [1921–1956]”)

（作者：熊秋良，系南京大学马克思主义学院教授；本文系国家社科基金重大项目“中国共产党党员队伍建设文献整理与研究〔1921—1956〕”的阶段性成果）

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