Zhang Xuemei and Liu Ruiru: The Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Assemblies [1]: A Successful Exploration of New Democratic [2] Political Power Construction
After the full-scale outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Communist Party of China (CPC), guided by the Anti-Japanese National United Front [1], gradually initiated an exploration of a brand-new form of democratic politics in various anti-Japanese base areas. The Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Assembly [2] was the earliest, most complete in form, and most typical of these democratic systems. Between January 17, 1939, and April 27, 1946, the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region successively held four major sessions: the First Assembly, the first and second sessions of the Second Assembly, and the Third Assembly. These provided an important channel for various social strata, political parties, groups, and ethnic minorities in the Border Region to engage in legal political participation, reflect their respective interests and demands, and express diverse political views. It also served as a model for the construction of political power for other base areas to study and emulate.
Exploring the Basic Framework of the New-Democratic Political System
The Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Assembly explored and formed a democratic political model that combined the expression of public opinion with the exercise of power. This not only provided institutional guarantees for the construction of democratic politics in the Border Region but also blazed a path for Western-style democratic politics rooted in China’s national conditions, building the basic framework of a New-Democratic [3] political system in terms of organizational structure, political power construction, and agenda setting.
Regarding organizational structure, a complete system of representative organs was formed, centered on the three-level assembly system of the Border Region, the county, and the township. The "Organic Regulations of Assemblies at All Levels in the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region" passed in 1939 clearly stipulated the establishment and improvement of assemblies at these three levels as "representative organs of public opinion at all levels of the Border Region." Their functions and powers included legislation, electing members of the government, and deliberating on fiscal budgets and final accounts. The revised "Organic Regulations" passed in 1941 stipulated that "assemblies at all levels in the Border Region are the organs of people's representation at all levels." In April 1946, the "Constitutional Principles of the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region" passed by the Third Assembly stipulated for the first time in a legal sense that the People's Congresses (Assemblies) at the regional, county, and township levels were "organs through which the people manage political power." This formed a democratic closed-loop of New-Democratic political construction, where the primary-level government was generated through direct elections at the township level, regional interests were integrated at the county level, and legislative decision-making was coordinated at the Border Region level.
The "Three-Thirds System" [4] principle of political power construction was clarified. In March 1940, in order to better realize democratic politics and unity in the War of Resistance, the Party Central Committee and Mao Zedong proposed the establishment of "Three-Thirds System" regimes based on the time and situation (where Communists, non-Party left-wing progressives, and centrists each accounted for one-third). After implementing this policy, the partisan composition of the Second Assembly underwent significant changes. In November 1941, of the 219 members attending the first session of the Second Assembly, there were 123 Communists, 24 Kuomintang members, 1 member of the National Salvation Association [5], 10 representatives of Eastern nationalities (Japanese, Korean, Indian, and Dutch East Indies) and Mongol, Hui, and Tibetan nationalities living in the Border Region, and 61 other non-party personages. The "Three-Thirds System" possessed broad representativeness, which was extremely conducive to reflecting the demands of people from all strata of the Border Region and increasing the cohesive force of the regime's public mandate.
In terms of agenda setting, the Assembly followed the principle of democratic centralism, covering links such as the deliberation of government work reports, the formulation of laws and regulations, the discussion of proposals, and elections. For example, in 1941, the Second Assembly received over 380 proposals, the highest number for any session, including military, political-legal, financial, cultural-educational, economic construction, and special proposals. These proposals were numerous, high-quality, and broad in scope, reflecting the tangible needs of the people in the Border Region. The Border Region Assembly and Government were earnest and responsible in handling these proposals. Leaders such as Mao Zedong also personally attended the Assembly to deliver important speeches, advocating an atmosphere where people could "say all they know and say it without reserve" [6].
Full Manifestation of the Effectiveness of Border Region Governance
The Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Assembly was an important form of democratic political organization led by the CPC during wartime. Its historical role is reflected not only in promoting the construction of the Border Region and the victory of the War of Resistance but also in providing a practical path and institutional prototype for the development of China’s New-Democratic revolution and socialist democratic politics.
First, it united and condensed the Anti-Japanese National United Front and enhanced the identification of the Border Region masses with the CPC. By absorbing enlightened gentry such as Li Dingming, An Wenqin, He Liancheng, and Huo Zile, as well as ethnic minority figures like Imam Ma Shengfu (Hui), Xian Weijun (Hui), and Nasudilegai (Mongol), the Border Region regime gained broad representativeness. The participation of these enlightened gentry and ethnic minorities not only increased the rallying power of the regime but also effectively integrated the anti-Japanese forces of all social strata, forming a powerful synergy for national resistance. As the masses in the Border Region said: "Only the Communist Party gives us democracy," and "The Border Region is good after all; the people decide everything." The practice of the Border Region Assembly demonstrates that broadly uniting the forces of all social strata is an important "magic weapon" for achieving victory in the War of Resistance.
Second, it promoted the democratization and scientific rigor of decision-making, successfully advancing the construction of democratic politics in the Border Region. Democratic personages actively offered suggestions for Border Region construction through various proposals, greatly improving the democratic and scientific nature of the anti-Japanese national regime. For instance, the "Better Troops and Simpler Administration" [7] proposal by Li Dingming and others was praised by Mao Zedong as a specific remedy for transforming "departmentalism" (organ-ism), bureaucratism, and formalism. After three rounds of implementation, this proposal effectively overcame the problems of bloated institutions, low efficiency, and prevailing bureaucratism, achieving the goals of streamlining organizations, unifying command, improving efficiency, and saving expenditures. In the process of social governance, the Assembly mobilized the masses of the Border Region to resolve practical problems through consultation, ensuring that matters were both discussed and decided upon, and exercising inspection and supervision over work and cadres. This reflected a value orientation of practicing the mass line and relying on the masses to manage public affairs.
Third, shifting from wartime democracy to national democracy, it laid the foundation for the system of People's Congresses and the system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC. On one hand, as a "testing ground" for democracy, the Assembly’s characteristics—such as representative democracy, legislative and supervisory functions, the principle of democratic centralism, multi-party cooperation, and the mass line—were directly absorbed and institutionalized by the system of People's Congresses. In April 1946, the "Constitutional Principles of the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region" passed by the Assembly established the system of People's Congresses in legislative form for the first time. On the other hand, democratic personages outside the Party participated in the decision-making and management of Border Region affairs via the Assembly, forming a regime characterized by "Communist leadership" and "multi-party participation," providing a reference for the establishment of the system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation under the leadership of the CPC after the founding of New China.
Lessons Accumulated by the Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region Assembly
The Assembly strictly implemented the "Three-Thirds System" in its political composition, ensuring the correct direction of major decisions. At the same time, it established "democratic centralism" in its rules of procedure, which both protected the rights of members to "speak without reserve" and achieved the unification of political will through the principle of "the minority is subordinate to the majority," accumulating valuable experience for the construction of democratic politics.
First, it consistently upheld the leadership of the CPC, providing a solid political guarantee for the construction of democratic politics. In the Border Region Assembly, the Communists fully promoted democracy but never abandoned or wavered in the Party’s leading position. This provided the fundamental principle of Chinese-path democratic politics—that the leadership of the proletarian party is always the most essential feature and the most fundamental guarantee of people's democracy. Second, it consistently upheld the principle of the people as masters of the country, providing a solid foundation of public opinion. The Assembly respected the principal status of the people and the pioneering spirit of the masses, fully absorbed different opinions and suggestions, and conducted political consultations with people from different social strata in an equal and friendly manner. Third, it consistently upheld criticism and self-criticism, providing a guarantee of fine conduct. Criticism and self-criticism are fine traditions of our Party, fully reflected in the Assembly and becoming an important concept for the development and improvement of socialist elective democracy. Fourth, it consistently insisted on seeking truth from facts and avoiding empty talk, providing historical experience for the concept of whole-process people's democracy.