Inside a People’s Commune is a short educational book by Chu Li and Tien Chieh-yun based on their two-month visit in 1973 to the Chiliying [Qiliying] Commune in Henan Province, China. Combining text and photos, the book documents the challenges and advances, the learning processes, and the organizational structure of that commune, which was one of the earliest in revolutionary China. When Hugo Chávez launched Venezuela’s communal project in 2009, he referred to the book, highlighting the section in which Chairman Mao Zedong emphasizes that the commune is a “creation of the masses.” Chávez then went on to insist that, just as China had done, Venezuela should aim to develop a unified national system of communes. He expressed the hope that such a system would be in place by 2030.

Following Chávez’s remarks, selections from Inside a People’s Commune were compiled into a pamphlet and widely distributed across Venezuela. Even today, Venezuelan communards refer to the book as a source of inspiration and guidance. The short excerpt below is typical of the book’s clear and pedagogical style. We feel that it is especially relevant to the theme of this issue, because it emphasizes: (1) the commune as a superior, more comprehensive form of organization involving social property; (2) the commune’s role as both an economic unit and a governmental one; and (3) how each commune belongs to a unified nationwide system. The text uses the Wade-Giles romanization system for Chinese personal and place names.

—C.G. & C.P.M.

Birth and Growth of the Commune

Situated in central China on the upper-middle section of the Peking-Canton Railway, only forty kilometres from the Yellow River which runs through the country from west to east, Chiliying was one of the earliest people’s communes born in the years of the Great Leap Forward.

Before 1958, there were 56 advanced co-ops in Chiliying’s 38 villages. Because they were collectivized to a higher degree, they were far superior to the preceding mutual-aid teams and elementary co-ops. But this organizational form, too, turned out to be inadequate for the rapid growth of production which came with the Great Leap Forward.

Many key undertakings—including the construction of water conservancy projects, speeding of farm mechanization, building of roads and installation of high-voltage power lines—urgently required that the co-ops combine and co-ordinate their activity. Indeed, four of Chiliying’s advanced co-ops had already worked together in close concert to dig a drainage canal.

In the spring of 1958, the township government received applications from many advanced co-ops asking for permission to merge. A number of them did so in July the same year after approval by the higher authorities. The resulting new, bigger organization set up a flour mill and small workshops making ball bearings and other items to meet the demands of production. It also assumed unified leadership over schools, supply and marketing centres and militia units formerly under the township government.

Gradually people came to understand that this new organization was not only larger than the advanced co-ops but also different in nature. Its activities were not confined to agriculture alone. Hence the name “agricultural co-operative” was no longer apt. What should it be called?

Some thought of the Paris Commune of 1871. Others added, “Since our ultimate objective is communism, we should also include the adjective ‘communist’ in the name.”

“But we’re still a very long way from that goal,” countered others. “So it wouldn’t be accurate.”

Repeated discussions followed. Several names were tried and the inscription on the wooden sign changed as often. One thing stuck, however. That was the word “commune.”

“Our state is called a People’s Republic, our government a people’s government, and our banks people’s banks,” some argued, “why not name ourselves ‘people’s commune’?

Most people agreed. And on August 4 a brand-new sign went up: “Chiliying People’s Commune, Hsinhsiang County.”

It was two days later that our great leader Chairman Mao came to inspect the new-born people’s commune. He praised it as having great hope for the future.

Thus Chiliying entered a new historical stage in its advance along the road of collectivization.

What Are the People’s Communes?

The people’s communes are a new creation by the Chinese masses. Evaluating their experience and creation, Chairman Mao said, “People’s communes are fine.” Under the leadership of the Party’s Central Committee and through people’s practice over the years, the rural communes have steadily improved and come to form a unified, nationwide system. A look at Chiliying will provide a profile of their nature and characteristics.

Born out of the merger of agricultural co-ops, the people’s communes at the present stage continue to be a form of socialist collective ownership. But a commune is larger than a co-op and collectivized to a greater extent. Larger size and a higher degree of public ownership—these are two distinguishing characteristics of the people’s communes.

The commune at Chiliying, with a population of 53,200 and 93,000 mu [Chinese acre] of farmland, was formed by combining 56 advanced co-ops. This exemplifies the communes’ bigger size.

Generally speaking, each of the 38 production brigades of the Chiliying commune embraces one village. Every brigade is divided into production teams, of which the Chiliying commune has 298. So the commune, production brigade and production team are the three levels of a people’s commune.

But why do we say the people’s commune represents a higher degree of collectivization? The answer lies chiefly in its system of ownership as compared with that of the co-op.

In ownership, the people’s communes also have three levels, with the production team as the basic one. This means that the commune, brigade and production team each own part of the means of production; but the land, the most important, belongs to the team. Hence the distribution of income also takes place mainly within the team which is the basic accounting unit. (In a number of places, the brigade is beginning to play this role.)

Take for instance the No. 29 Production Team of the Chiliying Production Brigade. It has 310 mu of land and 18 draught animals as well as a thresher, crusher, etc. They are collectively owned by its commune members of 36 households. The members work in the team and the income is distributed among them in line with the socialist principle, “from each according to his ability, to each according to his work.”

The brigade owns some of the larger means of production, too expensive for the average team to buy. They include such items as tractors and larger irrigation and drainage equipment. All are used in helping constituent teams with their production.

The Chiliying brigade, the largest in the commune of the same name, owns several tractors, a flour mill, brick and tile works, farm tool repair workshop and pig-breeding farm. It has six tractors ploughing the land of its 34 production teams, and a pig-breeding farm which sells weanlings to team members at 25 per cent below the regular price set by the state.

Owned and run at the commune level are industrial enterprises and water conservancy projects that are beyond the strength of the brigades.

At Chiliying, the commune runs a tractor station, mainly serving those brigades which do not yet have any of their own. Its repair shops service all the 56 tractors in the commune (including those owned by brigades). It has a separate plant which repairs other farm machinery and manufactures some types, such as threshers and crushers. Other commune undertakings are a phosphate fertilizer plant and a spinning mill, some larger-scale irrigation and drainage facilities serving the whole commune, and high-voltage power lines with transformers and other accessories. Besides financing commune-wide projects, the proceeds from these enterprises are used to help the brigades and teams expand production.

We can see from all this that the people’s communes, with their three-level ownership, represent a higher degree of collectivization than the co-ops.

Another key feature of the people’s communes is that, unlike the agricultural producers’ co-ops, they are not merely rural economic collectives. Besides engaging in farming, forestry, animal husbandry, side-occupations and fisheries, they discharge the functions and powers of the former township people’s governments. These include the administration of industry, finance and trade, cultural and educational work, public health work, civil affairs, and public security work within their own confines. Township governments have now ceased to exist, having been replaced by the communes. The people’s commune is, in fact, both an economic collective and a basic unit of socialist political power in rural China. This is what is meant by “integration of government administration and commune management.”

The Revolutionary Committee of the Chiliying People’s Commune corresponds to the former Chiliying Township People’s Government, and comes directly under the Revolutionary Committee of Hsinhsiang County. It administers all activity within the commune area, embodying the combination of industry, agriculture, commerce, education and military work as do all communes today.

Experience shows that the industries of the Chiliying commune—its farm machinery repair and building plant, phosphate fertilizer plant and others—have helped greatly to boost its agricultural production.

A trade network under the commune’s leadership covers its whole area. It supplies farm tools and machinery, chemical fertilizer and insecticide as well as quantities of consumer goods, promptly meeting the mounting needs.

Under the commune, rural education has made much progress. It now has 17 middle schools and all its 38 production brigades have primary schools. Total enrollment at both levels is 12,500. The commune has also started an agro-technical school which has graduated over 200 students from among the young peasants.

The commune-led Chiliying militia regiment carries on its functions and training concurrently with productive labour. It has become an important force in consolidating proletarian dictatorship and helping production.

The achievements of the Chiliying People’s Commune during its fifteen years of existence demonstrate the many faceted superiority of this form of organization which (a) is larger in scale than the co-ops, (b) integrates industry, agriculture, commerce, education and military affairs, and (c) merges government administration with commune management.