马和福(1893～1937)，革命烈士。回族，经名尕西姆。原籍甘肃河州 (今甘肃临夏回族自治州临夏县)东乡人。家境贫寒，自幼父母双亡。清光绪二十二年(1896)，年仅四岁的尕西姆跟随祖父逃荒来到宁夏。民国九年(1920)，海原大地震后，他避难投奔到已在险崖子(今同心县张家垣乡境内)定居的大哥马金山家中。为生活所迫，先后干过皮匠、石匠、泥水匠和榨油工，还在清真寺当过“木札非” (寺师夫)。民国十六年(1927)才在豫旺堡南塬刘家岗打了几孔土窑，与白姓妇女结婚成了家。
1936年5月，中央红军根据党中央和中革军委制定的 “以发展求巩固” 的战略方针，为了巩固和扩大陕甘宁边区革命根据地，发展壮大红军力量，迎接红二、四方面军北上抗日，早日实现红军三大主力会师，发展抗日民族统一战线工作，促进全国团结抗日新局面早日形成。中央决定开展西征战役计划，组建“中国人民抗日红军西方野战军” ，彭德怀任司令员兼政委。红军在西征过程中，先后颁发了一系列加强民族团结和争取广大回族人民共同抗日的重要文件，主要有《总政治部关于回民工作的指示》 (1936年5月24日)、《中华苏维埃中央政府对回族人民的宣言》 (1936年5月25日)、《中华苏维埃人民共和国中央政府、中国人民抗日红军革命军事委员会布告》 (1936年6月1日)。还编印并在军内散布了《回民工作问答讲话》、《对回民之三大禁条四大注意及口号》等材料，在回民聚居地区产生了非常好的影响。加之红军指战员的模范行动，从而彻底粉碎了反动派散布的“共产党杀回灭教” 、“共产共妻”的无耻谎言和诱骗回民“舍命保教”得“舍西德” (伊斯兰教对圣战阵亡穆斯林的称谓)的阴谋。
陕甘宁省豫海县回民自治政府主席——马和福
Ma Hefu，President of the Huis’ AutonomousGovernment ofyuhai in Shan-Gan-Ning Provinces
豫旺县解放以后，马和福家的窑洞内也驻进了红军。在与红军朝夕相处的日子里，他亲身体验到“红军真是帮助回族人民翻身求解放的‘仁义之师’ 。他把红军当作自己最亲的人，倾心热爱，主动帮助红军办事” 。党组织也观察到，这位苦大仇深的淳朴农民，在人民群众中有很高的威望，办事认真，也很有能力，是一位不可多得而又可以完全信赖的革命同志，便把马和福列为主要积极分子，对他进行重点培养，曾选派他参加民族培训班学习，请他在大会上向红军战士诉苦，让他独当一面主持支前工作。马和福进步很快，不久就被接收为中共预备党员，选为豫旺县苏维埃临时政府下辖的豫旺区苏维埃主席。八月初，西征战役胜利结束后，红军把主要精力转入到深入发动群众，建立地方苏维埃政权上来。为了适应党在宁夏新解放区中回民聚居广泛、穆斯林群众集中这一特点和新形势的需要，中共中央、中华全国苏维埃政府和毛泽东主席决定，在豫旺县苏维埃临时政府成立之后，进一步筹建豫海县回民自治政府。八月中旬，陕甘宁省委书记李富春受中央委派，专程到豫旺县同心城帮助指导筹建工作，成立了豫海县回民自治政府筹备委员会。经过两个月的紧张准备，陕甘宁省豫海县回民自治政府成立大会于8月20日在豫旺县同心城清真大寺隆重举行，庄严宣告我国第一个回民自治革命政权的诞生。来自各乡、区的回民代表和各界人士三百多人参加成立大会。在为期三天的代表大会上，讨论并通过了《豫海县回民自治政府条例》、《减租减息条例》、《土地条例》等有关决议案，选举产生了豫海县回民自治政府的领导成员：
主席： 马和福(回)
副主席： 李存德(回)
保卫部长： 杨奇清(汉、红军代表)
军事部长： 马青年(回、红军代表)
青工部长：贺崇华(汉)
少共书记： 韩民栋(汉)
马和福同志在保卫新生的人民政权，支援红军和团结发动回族群众方面，领导自治政府一班人做了大量工作。其主要业绩为：
(一)组织回民解放会，建立地方武装。马和福亲自兼任县游击大队大队长，他要求并帮助各乡、区分别组织游击队。另外，还成立了一支江湖抗日游击队。
(二)做好支前工作。豫海地方贫困，在极端艰难的条件下，马和福领导各级地方政府积极筹粮筹款，先后共征粮六万余斤、银元八万多块、大烟土一万多两、皮衣一千多件等，基本保证了红军的供给。
(三)欢迎红一、二、四方面军在豫海县境内集结。10月下旬，当红军三大主力部队进入同心城时，回族群众纷纷端上“哈利发尔” (盛各种小吃的迎客盘)夹道欢迎。自治政府还在同心城召开了盛大的军民联欢会，马和福主席首先致欢迎词，他在热情洋溢的讲话中，称赞共产党和红军是解放人民的“大救星” ，代表全县回汉人民，“向伟大的共产党和红军表示衷心感谢” ，最后还表示，“我们豫海县全体人民，一定要努力发展生产，以实际行动来支援红军北上抗日! ”
11月中旬，红军三大主力为了联合组织大量歼敌的山城堡战斗，全部撤离豫海地区，自治政府领导成员随军转移或转入地下活动，而马和福仍然坚持在家乡进行斗争。1937年2月底，马和福被坏人告密，落入敌人魔掌。其间，党组织多次派人秘密深入到豫海地方寻找马和福的下落，都没有结果。
马和福被押送宁夏省城后，受尽了种种酷刑的折磨，但他软硬不吃，一字不吐，对党忠贞不屈，大义凛然，表现出一个共产党员的大无畏牺牲精神。敌人无可奈何，在一无所获之后，于1937年4月3日 (农历二月二十二日)，将马和福押回同心城杀害。临刑前，县长屈端问他：“你还有什么话说?”他坦然地回答： “为民族的解放，虽死无恨，我要换个 ‘吾素里’ (大净)。”他换了水(洗澡)，穿好衣服，昂首挺胸走向刑场，牺牲时年仅四十四岁。马和福是回民解放的殉难者，是一位回族英雄，是广大回族同胞的骄傲。
中华人民共和国成立以后，同心县人民政府追认马和福同志为革命烈士，为了纪念这位回族英雄，于1953年在同心县城修建了马和福烈士陵园，敬立了纪念碑。
Ma Hefu (1893-1937)，whose Islamic name was Garscim，was arevolutionary martyr. Ma was born in Eastern Village of Hezhou Region，Gansu Province (preseant-day Linxia County of Linxia Hui AutonomousPrefecture of Gansu Provice). With family in straitened circumstances，both his parentsdied since his childhood. In the 22nd year of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty(1896)，four-year-old Garscim fled from famine with his grandfather to Ningxia. In1920，after the Great Earthquake in Haiyuan (present day Haiyuan County of NingxiaHui Autonomous Region)，he fled from the disaster to his eldest brother Ma Jinshan，who had settled down in a small village in Tongxin County. Compelled by life，Ma didvarious kinds of jobs such as cobbler，stone masion，bricklayer and oil-extractingengineer successively，even sundry duties in the mosque. In 1927，Ma married a girlwith the family name Bai.
In May 1936，answering the call of the Central Committee of ChineseCommunist Party，the Central Red Army mapped out strategy and policy that "ask forthe consolidation through development" in order to consolidate and expand therevolutionary base area of the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia Border Region. The strategywas inclined to develop the strength of the Red Army and await the meeting of Twoand Four Group of Red Army to go up the North to resist against Japan. It alsoexpected early joined forces in three major main forces of the Red Army and a nationalunited front work，promoting the establishment of the whole nation's uniting togetherto resist against Japan as soon as possible in new situation. The Central Committeeplanned to launch the West and set up"The Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army in theWestern Field". Peng Xunhuai assumed office as the commandant and politicalcommissar. In the course of launching the West，the Red Army issued a series ofimportant files to strengthen the national unity and won over the masses of Huinationalities to resist against Japan jointly，mainly as follows："Declaration of ChineseCentral Soviet Government to the People of Hui " (May 25，1936)，"Notice of theChinese Central Soviet Government of the People's Republic & Chinese People AntiJapanese Red Army Military Revolution Committee" (June 1
st 1936); they also printedand spread the material such as" Questions and Answers to the Work for Huis" ;"ThreeTaboos and Four Attentions to the Huis"in the army. This had exerted a very goodinfluence on the Huis who were living in concentrated communities in this area. Alongwith the exemplary actions of the officers and soldiers of the Red Army，the Red Armycrushed completely the reactionary propagandas and the shameless lies that"CommunistParty kills and wipes out the Huis"，that the Communists"share wife and propertyaltogether"and destroyed inveiglement of the Huis"to afford to risk one's life to protectthe religious doctrine ".
After Yuwang County was liberated，Ma Hefu's cave dwelling welcomed the stayof the Red Army men too. With the days together with the Red Army from morningto night，Ma experienced that"the Red Army was really'the Division of theKindheartedness and Righteousness' who helped the Huis to stand up and ask for theliberation in person". He started to regard the Red Army as "the person that kissed mostby oneself" and developed deep love for them and helped to handle affairs in the RedArmy voluntarily. The Party organization，too，observed this honest peasant，havingsuffered bitterly and nursing deep hatred，a rare revolutionary comrade who couldtotally be trusted. He gained very high prestige among the people for his conscientiouswork and capabilities. The Party Organization classified Ma Hefu as the major activistand gave him training especially. They appointed him to attend the national trainingclass，invited him to pour out his woes to the Red Army men and made him presideover the work of the whole locality to support the front. Ma progressed quickly and wassoon accepted as the probationary Party member of the Communist Party of China. Hewas elected as Soviet's president of Yuwang District，which was under the command oftemporary Soviet Government of Yuwang County.
In early August of 1936，after winning the victory in the wester n battlefield，theRed Army changed its main energy over wide and deep mobilization of the masses andthe establishment of the local Soviet's regime. The distinguish feature of Huis'inhabitation was living together in centralized communities，but extensively scattered inlarge scales of areas. The newly-liberated Ningxia (in the north-west of China) was anarea that masses of Moslems' settlement was comparatively centralized. To meet thecharacteristic and new need of situation，the Central Committee of the CommunistParty of China，the National Soviet's Government and Chairman Mao Zedong decidedfurther to establish the Huis' autonomous government of Yuhai County soon after theSoviet Government of Yuwang County was established. In mid-August，appointed bythe central authorities，Li Fuchun，the secretary of provincial Party committee inShaan-Gan-Ning Border Region，got on a special trip to Tongxin，a town under theadministration of Yuwang County，helping prepare to establish the preparatorycommittee of the Huis' Autonomous Government of Yuhai County. After two monthsintensive preparation，the inaugural meeting of the Huis' Autonomous Government ofYuhai County was held ceremoniously in Large Islamic Temple of Tongxin Town onAugust 20，1936，declaring solemnly the birth of the revolutionary regime of the firstHuis' autonomy of our country. More than 300 people，the Huis' representatives fromevery township or district and people from all walks of life participated in the inauguralmeeting. During the three-day meeting，the representatives discussed and passed therelevant draft resolutions，such as "Regulations of the Hui Autonomous Government ofYuhai County"，"Regulations of Cutting and Reducing Renting-rates "，"LandRegulations "etc.. The meeting elected the leading members of the Huis' AutonomousGovernment of Yuhai County：
President： Ma Hefu (Hui nationality)
Vice-president; Li Cunde (Hui nationality)
Security Secretary： Yang Qiqing ( Han nationality，the Red Army representative)
Military Secretary： Ma Qingnian (Hui nationality，the Red Army representative)
Secretaries of Young Workers： He Chonghua (Han nationality)
Altogether with the secretaries，Ma Hefu did a large number of jobs insafeguarding the newly-built people's regime，supporting the Red Army and mobilizingthe Moslem masses in the autonomous government. His main achievements were asfollows：
(1) Organize the Huis liberating Committee and set up local armed forces. MaHefu held county guerrilla group leader of warfare in person. He required and helpedevery township and district to set up the guerrilla force respectively. In addition，heorganized people in towns and villages all over the country and resisted against Japan inthe guerrilla force.
(2) Do well the work of supporting the front. Although Yuhai was a local poorarea，Ma Hefu actively led the local governments at all levels to raise the grain andmoney. Altogether they imposed more than 60，000 jin of grain，more than 80，000pieces of silver dollars，more than 1，000 pieces of fur clothing，etc.，which basicallyguaranteed the supply of the Red Army.
(3) Welcome the unity of One，Two，Four Red Army groups within theterritory of Yuwang County. In late October，1936，when the three main forces of theRed Army entered the Tongxin city，Hui masses served different kinds of food，liningthe streets to welcome the Red Army men one after another. The AutonomousGovernment of Tongxin also held grand get-together between army and the people.President Ma Hefu delivered an ardent speech. Ma acclaimed that Communist Party andthe Red Army as "big liberator" who liberated the people. And on behalf of the HuiHan people of the whole county，Ma expressed the heartily gratitude to the greatCommunist Party and the Red Army and the determination that "we all people inYuhai，will develop production in every effort to support the Red Army to go up theNorth and resist against Japan with the practical action!"
In mid-November 1936，in order to assemble large forces to fight for the battle inShancheng Castle，three major forces of the Red Army all withdrew from Yuhai area.Along with the army，the leading members of Autonomous Government shifted orchanged over to underground activities，yet Ma Hefu still kept up the struggle in hishometown. At the end of February of 1937，Ma Hehu's secret identity was revealed byan informer and he fell into the enemy's devil clutches. During that time，the Partyorganization got deeply to Yuhai locality to look for the whereabouts of Ma secretly formany times，coming to nothing.
Ma Hefu had suffered all sorts of torments and cruel tortures after escorting in theprovincial capital of Ningxia，but loyally and unyieldingly，he neither listened to reasonnor bowed to force. With righteous dignity，he demonstrated a Communist's dauntlesssacrifice spirit. The enemy had no way out. On April 3，1937 (February 22 of lunarcalendar)，without any gains，they escorted Ma back to Tongxin city to murder. Justbefore execution，County Magistrate Qu Duan asked him if he had any thing to say. Heanswered calmly "To die for the national liberation，I have no regret. All I want is aIslam Ghusl." According to his religiou s custom，he "changed water" (have a bath)，gotdressed，chin up and chest out，moved towards the execution ground，only 44 years old.Ma Hefu was a hero of Hui，who died for Huis liberation. He was the pride of themasses of Hui's compatriots.
After the People's Republic of China was founded，Tongxin People's Governmentconferred posthumously Comrade Ma Hefu as revolutionary martyrs. In honor of thisHui hero，the monument to Ma Hefu was built in the martyrs' park in Tongxin in1953.
