REGRESSION TO MAY 4TH MOVEMENT
Versailles Conference & May 4th Students' Movement
Before China's student movements, Korean students already launched a massive protest against Japanese colonial rule. Jin Baifan, aka, Jin Jiu [Kin Kau, i.e., friend of Chinese revolutionaries like Huang Xing & Chen Qimei], returned to Korea to join the March 1st 1919 Korean Student Movement against Japan after being released by Japanese for implication in Dec 1909 An Jung-geun's assassination of Hirobumi Ito. After Japanese crackdown on Korean student movements, Jin Jiu escaped to China via Andong [Dandong] to take charge of "interim Korean government", i.e., "Da Haan Minh Guo", an entity that was sabotaged by USA after it implanted pro-American Syngman Rhee after WWII. Korean patriots, like Li Chengwan [Syngman Rhee], established a Korean restoration movement in Shanghai under Chinese auspice. The "interim Korean government" was set up for sake of sending a rep to the Geneva Peace Conference as an answer for Wilson's call for national self-determination. On April 11th 1919, inside of French concession territory in Shanghai, Korean exiles passed ten clauses of interim Korean constitution, and made Syngman Rhee into president of "Da Haan Minh Guo". Syngman Rhee and An Changhao were refused entrance to Geneva meeting. (Back in 1912, Chen Qimei, a friend of An Jung-geun, established with "Korean patriots" a "New Asia Mutual Aid Society" in Shanghai.)
May 4th Students' Movement was induced by, again, China's humiliation in the hands of foreign imperialists. As a victor of the First World War, China was abandoned by the West in the conflicts over Japan's succession of Germany's interests in China's Shandong Province. Throughout WWI, Chinese people had been holding out high hopes for "Woodrow Wilson's promises of self-determination and social justice for all peoples". On Nov 11th 1918, Chinese government declared a three day celebration of the victory of WWI. The von Ketleler's monument was dismantled. On Nov 17th, 60000 people paraded on the streets. Chinese people believed that Wilson 14 Points [first raised on Jan 8th 1918] would secure China's sovereignty, including the rescission of secret treaty with Japan and recovery of Shandong Peninsula.
However, once Versailles Conference started on Jan 18th 1919, news came from Paris that Japan might inherit German interest in Shandong. After WWI, the Peking government dispatched a team of diplomats, headed by Lu Zhengxiang and Gu Weijun [Wellington Koo], to the conference for sake of revoking German/Austrian interests in China, nullifying partial if not whole set of the 1915 Sino-Japanese Agreements, and restoring China's rights to extra-territories, extraterritoriality and customs. Diplomat Gu Weijun had several rounds of debates with Japanese representative and leaders of the West in regards to China's restoration of territorial integrity on Shandong Peninsula. Japanese representative tried to invoke a 1918 secret treaty between China and Japan to maintain its claim of interests in Shandong. Chinese delegation speaker, Wang Zhengting, disclosed that it was a diplomatic memorandum exchange by China's emissary Zhang Zongxiang, only. Japan was angered by China's claim that China would publish the secret treaty and advised China in observing diplomatic protocol. Japan tried to have Peking government recall those Chinese diplomats from Paris, but various Chinese provinces wired over support to Peking's government. China published Japan's memorandum in regards to Japan's notification. With Peking's ambiguous instructions, Chinese representatives published the secret agreements on Feb 12th of 1919 (lunar calendar). Two months later, the Conference touched on China's issue again. Japan opposed Wilson and Lloyd's suggestion to have Shandong taken over by the League of Nations and threatened the Conference with refusal to sign peace treaty with defeated Germany as a closure of war. Japan also threatened to disclose its secret treaties signed with Britain-France-Italy in regards to its succession of German interest in Shandong. George Lloyd apologized to Gu Weijun for the secret treaty with Japan and Wilson cited that China had already agreed to the terms with Japan in 1915/1918 and should observe its obligations. At Versailles Conference, the West, including US President Woodrow Wilson, claimed that China had already agreed to the terms among the infamous Japanese 'Twenty-one Demands' of 1915 that China was coerced into when Japan and Britain attacked Germany's Far East interest during early years of WWI. China protested against Britain-US-France's decision in regards to transfer of German interest to Japan. Wilson, who brought '14 Points Peace Plan' to the conference, left France in disappointment, and US Congress refused to ratify the Paris Conference terms or join the League of Nations.
Chinese students in Japan first took action against the "traitor ministers" of the Peking government, and then students of Peking answered with a massive protest that would come to be called May 4th 1919 Students' Movement. May 4th 1919 Students' Movement would compel China's diplomats into refusal to sign the peace treaty in Paris. (Later on May 20th 1921, Northern Warlord Government signed the first equal treaty with a Western power, i.e., Germany, in modern history. Li Ao eulogized Peking government for its foresight in joining WWI while KMT elements had mostly objected to China's war participation. By the way, Hitler had at one time expressed extreme hatred of Japanese for the deaths of Germans in Qingdao and deprivation of German interests in the Far East during a talk with a Chinese representative in late 1930s.)
Chinese students in Japan were the first group of protesters and they had lay siege of Zhang Zongxiang, a pro-Japan ROC emissary to Japan. Chinese students in Japan asked Zhang Zongxiang why he had not sold out his wife after he had sold out China. Students in Peking, hearing of the students' activities in Japan, launched into full motion a city-wide protest movement that would come to be known as May 4th Students' Movement (later to be designated Communist China's Youth Memorial Day). Students across Peking made preparations on May 3rd.
Inside of Peking University, at 10:00 am on May 4th 1919, Sunday, student leader Luo Jialun just returned from a visit to Peking Advanced Normal College. At the proposal by Di Junwu, Luo Jialun wrote a student proclamation in the name of eight colleges and universities of Peking.
The draft called for workers and merchants of the nation to take action [strikes] immediately and called for a National Convention for sake of punishing the traitors and arguing for national sovereignty.
The proclamation was to be printed by Li Xinbai's "populace printing house", to be distributed by 20000 copies.
Zhang Guotao had been deputy chief of the students' association for Beijing University, and later acted as the chairman for the united student associations of Beijing colleges and universities during the May 4th Movement of 1919.
Fu Sinian was the chairman for the student association of Beijing University, and led the charge at residency of foeign minister.
Fu Guoyong, at http://www.secretchina.com/news/articles/3/11/14/55145.html, stated that two days before the eruption, Cai Yuanpei, the schoolmaster of Peking University, had assembled class heads for instigating the student movements.
At about 1:00 pm, on May 4th, over 3000 students converged upon Tian'an'men Square, with banners calling for "Revocation of 21 Demands", "Return of Qingdao" and "Punishing Traitors". After 2:00 pm, students marched towards the foreign legation area; however, extraterritory police in front of American embassy refused to let students walk through. Students then decided to go straight to the residency of Cao Rulin. Police in front of Cao Rulin's house did not stop the students. Students climbed into the place through a window, ransacked the furnishings, and caught and hit Zhang Zongxiang who happened to be visiting Cao Rulin. Cao Rulin himself hid in a secret room and escaped the students. Students then lit the mosquito vent and burnt Cao Rulin's so-called Zhaojialou Residency. Police reinforcement arrived, put down the fire, and arrested about 32 stranded students. After the students were arrested, colleges and universities across China echoed the support. Cai Yuanpei, i.e., the schoolmaster of Peking U, claimed to be willing to take the blame so that students could be released. By May 7th, Peking authority had to release the students.
Students across the nation propogated the "national salvation". In Yixing of Jiangsu Prov, i.e., a typical southern Chinese town, Xu Zhucheng [1907-?], during the timeframe of summer school break, witnessed the spread of posters and slogans across the town, with such wording as "Return My Qingdao !", "Would Rather Die To Resist Japanese Commodities !", and "Never Let The [Patriotic] Fever Last Five Minutes !". Students put up dramas entitled "The Hatred Of Koreans Over Loss Of Country". Wan Yijun, a student who returned to hometown from Shanghai for summer break, acted as Korean assassin An Jung-geu [An Chongwen]. (Per Xu Zhucheng, Wan Yijun joined the communist movement and died during 1928 Yixing Uprising.)
Further details of May Fourth Movement will be covered at May4th.htm
Chen Yongfa claimed that China's intellectuals, deeply disappointed over the evaporation of Wilson 14 principles, finally turned to Russian Bolshevikism as a result of the Western betrayal to China on the matter of Japan's inheriting German interests. Chen Yongfa cited Chen Duxiu's change of attitude in calling Wilson a 'big cannon W' [i.e., 'false promise crook'] rather 'first good man of this world'. Chen Yongfa stated that philosopher Zhang Dongsun had commented that socialism research had become a fad after WWI in China.
TO BE CONTINUED !
Written by Ah Xiang