The unity claimed for more than seven decades by the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China -cloistered on the island of Taiwan and with hardly any official international recognition- lasted the length of a toast: the one made by Chiang Kai-shek and Mao Zedong on October 10, 1945, during the Double Ten Festival, which commemorated the Wuchang uprising against the Qing dynasty in 1911.
The Double Ten Agreement meant that those who had been enemies in a bloody civil war, but had been able to join forces against the Japanese invasion of Manchuria during World War II, recognized each other and accepted a multi-party political system. And the government, led by the Koumintang, promised to hold free elections.
But both parties knew that all this was just one more strategy of the traditional Chinese game of cat and mouse, which was preceded by the dispute, now only dialectical, of both parties. This is how Chiang himself let it be seen in the speech that he gave a few months earlier before the preparatory commission of the Provisional Government in Chungking, which we offer in excerpt.
The nationalist leader claimed the legitimacy of the Koumintang to hold power, backed by its military force, denounced the non-compliance and national smear campaigns of the Communist Party and urged its leaders to place their army under the command of the National Army, of which he himself was the supreme commander.
And if Mao willingly accepted the bet, aware that he had little to lose as long as he maintained his military structure, which had the support of the Soviet Union, Chiang soon broke the deck, aware of the superiority of his Army and, above all, of the United States support. Not in vain, General George Marshall participated in the agreement, positioning his country in a frustrated rehearsal of reconstruction of what would be the Marshall Plan in Europe.
Chiang's government did not advance in the country's democratization process nor did it call the promised elections, which led to the breaking of the truce between the Koumintang and the Communist Party and the resumption of hostilities. Initially successful for the regime in Nanjing, where the capital was located, but disastrous as Mao advanced on his Long March through impoverished inner China.
In desperation, Chiang Kai-shek resigned from office and fled to the island of Formosa, present-day Taiwan, taking with him much of the government's gold and dollar reserves. In October 1949 Mao Zedong proclaimed the People's Republic of China with control of all of mainland China except for the colonies of Hong Kong and Macao.
The outbreak of the Korean War less than a year later with the determined action of the United States in the Pacific to stop the advance of socialism reinforced the dictatorship that Chiang, who called himself Generalissimo, established in Taiwan, a territory that remains outside the control of Beijing.
“You will recall that in 1936 the Government decided to convene a National Assembly on November 12, 1937 for the inauguration of the constitutional government and the termination of the period of political tutelage under the Kuomintang. On July 7, 1937, Japan suddenly declared war on us and the plan had to be shelved. However, the Kuomintang's determination to realize a constitutional government remained as strong as ever.
”The Kuomintang is the historical party of the national revolution: it overthrew the Manchu dynasty, destroyed Yuan Shih-kai, who would be emperor, completely defeated the militarists who succeeded him, brought about national unification, achieved the elimination of treaties unequal and led the country into the eight-year struggle against Japan.
”We are the party of liberation and progress. By convening the National Assembly and returning the government to the people in accordance with the holy will of Sun Yat-sen, the Kuomintang fulfills its historical role.
”We must come out of this war as a united nation. Only a united nation can effectively carry out the tasks of political and economic reconstruction to improve the lot of our working masses and handle the problems of foreign relations in a new and uncharted world.
”Before the Japanese invasion, we were a united nation. Today, except for the communists and their armed forces, we are a united nation. There are no independent warlords or local governments to challenge central authority.
”For a long time I have been convinced that the solution of the communist question must be by political means. The Government has worked to make the agreement political. Since the public is not well informed about our recent efforts to come to terms with the communists, the time has come to clear the air.
”As you know, negotiations with the communists have been a perennial problem for many years. It has been our invariable experience that as soon as one demand is satisfied, new ones arise. The communists' latest demand is that the government immediately liquidate the Kuomintang government and hand over all power to a multi-party coalition.
”The position of the Government is that it is willing to admit other parties, including communist and non-partisan leaders, to participate in the Government without the Kuomintang relinquishing its final decision-making power and final responsibility until the convening of the National Assembly. We have even offered to include the communists and other parties in a body to be established along the lines of what is known abroad as a war cabinet.
”For the past eight years, the country has weathered all the vicissitudes of military setbacks and unbelievable deprivation and has weathered the storm for the simple reason that it has been led by a stable and strong government. The war remains to be won, the future is still full of dangers.
”If the government shirks its responsibility and hands over its final decision-making power to a combination of political parties, all would be endless friction and fear, leading to the collapse of the central authorities. Bear in mind that in the face of such a contingency, unlike other countries, in our country there is currently no body responsible for representing the people to which the Government can appeal.
“I repeat, whether by accident or by design, the Kuomintang has had the responsibility of running the country through the turbulent past decade and beyond. He will return the supreme power to the people through the National Assembly, and in the meantime, he will be willing to admit other parties to participate in the Government, but he definitely cannot abdicate to a flexible mix of parties. Such a surrender would not mean returning power to the people.
”We must come out of the war with a united army. The communists cannot maintain their own army. Here let me make a small digression. Overseas Chinese communist propaganda has tried to justify this private army on the grounds that if it is incorporated into the National Army, it will be in danger of being destroyed or discriminated against.
“Their propaganda also magnifies, out of all proportion, the real military strength of the communists. I need not tell you that government forces have always, without exception, borne the brunt of Japanese attack and will continue to do so. Today, with the unconditional cooperation of our allies, powerful armies are being equipped and conditioned to take the offensive. We are synchronizing our efforts with those of our allies to expel Japan from the Asian continent.
"Since the start of the last phase of negotiations with the communists in November last year, the government, aware of the need to avoid mutual recriminations if the parties to a dispute are sincere in their desire to reach a settlement, has done everything possible to prevent the newspapers from attacking the communists.
”But the communists have used the negotiations to launch a dizzying publicity campaign, both at home and abroad, defamatory of the government and the Kuomintang. At the very moment the delegates sat down for the conference, ridiculous accusations were made that the government was negotiating with the Japanese. I consider it below my dignity as head of state to answer these basic charges.
”Nobody aware of the future of our 450 million citizens and aware of being in the court of history would want to plunge the country into a civil war. The Government has shown its readiness and is always ready to consult with the Communists in order to achieve a real and lasting settlement with them.
”The National Assembly to inaugurate the constitutional government will convene on November 12, subject to the approval of the Kuomintang Congress which will convene in May. As of the inauguration, all political parties will have legal status and will enjoy equality. The Government has offered to give legal recognition to the Communist Party as soon as it agrees to incorporate its army and local administration into the National Army and Government.
”I am optimistic about national unification and the future of democratic government in our country. The torrent of public opinion demanding national unity and reconstruction grows ever stronger and will soon become an irresistible force. No individual or political party can afford to ignore this force any longer. May all of us, regardless of our party affiliation, work together for the dual goals of our people: national unity and reconstruction.”
