P. C. Chang and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Hans Ingvar Roth
Читать онлайн книгу.
Army in June 1928. During the fighting, one soldier distinguished himself, “Generalissimo” Chiang Kai-shek, who subsequently turned on his Communist former allies, killing several of them once Shanghai had fallen. The new regime was thus initiated in 1927 with a domestic bloodbath in Shanghai. The Kuomintang and the Communists would henceforth be mortal enemies.7
Chiang Kai-shek succeeded Sun Yat-sen after the latter’s death, ushering in a period of Chinese history known as the Nanking period (1928–1937). In 1928, a new Chinese government was announced in Nanking, which lent its name to what has come to be called China’s second revolution of the twentieth century (the first being the revolution of 1911 against the emperor, and the third being the Communist revolution of 1949).
Nanking thus became the country’s new capital and there began a period of attempted modernization, including educational reforms, industrial investments, and new infrastructure. The position of women was improved during this period. In 1934, Chiang Kai-shek also began promoting the New Life Movement as an ideological alternative to communism.
Chiang Kai-shek converted to Christianity in 1931 partly because of the influence of his wife at the time, Soong May Ling. His new philosophy was an attempt to modernize China by emphasizing Confucian norms such as diligence, loyalty, and a modest, healthy way of life.8 This philosophy had minimal impact in the Chinese republic, to judge from the rising levels of materialism and corruption. At the same time, Chiang Kai-shek strove to underscore the importance of science and modern technology for the development of society, and he fought against a variety of superstitions. He stressed the importance of the family and harmony and order in society, and he was completely against the Communist creed of class warfare.
Despite their ideological differences, the Kuomintang and the Communists had a number of points in common. Both parties stressed the value of frugality, and they wanted to unite China and liberate it from foreign influence.9 They also sought to implement modernization and liberation from traditional mythologies and religious attitudes. The Kuomintang’s supporters and the Communists also shared the Leninist perspective of the party as the primary political entity in society. A national collectivism and solidarity was also emphasized. During the Nanking period, however, the Japanese encroached upon China in a growing number of ways, and the Kuomintang regime became increasingly drawn into conflicts with the various Communist groups. The end result was an undermining of the republic’s capacity to create the modern and unified China that had been Sun Yat-sen’s great vision. Chiang Kai-shek shared this vision, too, and wanted to unite China with the Kuomintang as its ruling party. Chiang’s attitude toward the Communists found expression in his famous aphorism that the Japanese were a disease of the skin but the Communists, a disease of the heart.10
Opinions on Chiang Kai-shek have changed throughout history. What stands out are his authoritarian tendencies as well as his inability to prevent the spread of corruption during the final years of the republic. He was also accused of having been capitalism’s errand boy. This latter accusation is debatable, however, given that Chiang Kai-shek initiated state industrial projects, in the spirit of Roosevelt’s New Deal, during the global depression that prevailed throughout the 1930s. What is more, he also worked closely with the League of Nations to counteract and mitigate the effects of natural disasters, such as that which resulted from the Yangtze River’s flooding in 1931.11 His famous retort was also uttered in the context of his failure to prevent the Communist seizure of power in 1949. At the same time, a number of commentators regard the failings of his early career as having been partly compensated for by his subsequent career as the co-creator of the modern and economically successful republic of Taiwan following the Communist seizure of power on the mainland.12
How did Peng Chun Chang view Chiang Kai-shek and the political changes that took place during the first decades of the twentieth century? Stanley Chang relates the following:
My father had a lot to say about the political upheavals in China. He characterized the political changes in China as being like a child experiencing a succession of diseases of childhood: mumps, chicken pox, etc. The original toppling of the Qing dynasty in 1911 took place when my father was at Clark University, so he was not involved in it. Sun Yat-sen became leader of the new republic. He died shortly after in 1925. In the power struggle after his death, General Chiang Kai-shek assumed the leadership role. His wife Soong May Ling (Song Meiling) had been educated at Wellesley College in the United States, so my father knew her well. However, my father had an extremely low opinion of the General, as emerged from various asides which he made in my presence.
Stanley Chang’s recollections are illuminating, not least in light of his father’s poor relations with the Chinese delegation to the United Nations at the end of the 1940s. That Chang did not rate Chiang Kai-shek highly undoubtedly proved to be a handicap for him later in life, even if it was perhaps cushioned by Chang’s friendship with Chiang’s wife and by the fact that Chiang held his brother Poling in high esteem. In official settings during his time as representative of the Chinese government, however, Chang clearly articulated a loyalty to the regime for a long time and, above all, Chiang Kai-shek.13 He was positive about certain things that Chiang Kai-shek did during the 1930s. In an article published in 1938, Chang said the following about the political leader:
At the end of 1935, General Chiang Kai-shek went to Nanking and assumed the Premiership; he formed his Cabinet containing intellectuals and experienced businessmen, as well as party members. Now that was a widening of the basis of the government; it began to assume something of a true national character. He started, first of all, the currency reform—at the end of 1935. That is very significant. Before that time the currency was not uniform; after that time currency all over the country become to be uniform…. Through 1935, various constructive efforts took place, the increase of trade, the improvement of the international situation, the building of the railroads.14
The fact that Chang managed to secure prominent posts in the 1930s and 1940s was a good indication that Chiang and his closest circle viewed Chang approvingly for at least part of his professional life.
It should be mentioned that Chiang Kai-shek did not enjoy broad popular support among liberally inclined circles in China, because of, among other things, the widespread corruption in society and the unsatisfactory progress of the campaigns against Japan and the Communists. As a leader he also showed strong intolerance for people who disagreed with him.15 The alternatives were few, however. In the 1930s, one could either join the Communists, who were practically a guerrilla group that had no substantial territories under their control, or Japan, which was unthinkable for most people. The liberal-democratic discussions that were conducted in liberal circles similarly lacked any politically powerful mouthpiece.16
Chang and Mei Lanfang
Despite Chang’s many commitments to family and university life, his aesthetic interests did not slacken. As we have seen, he was not only interested in introducing Western plays to Chinese audiences, he was also eager to introduce Chinese culture to American and European audiences. In 1930, Chang met the famous Chinese opera singer Mei Lanfang (1894–1961) at the Chinese Embassy while on a trip to Washington DC for the purposes of fundraising for Nankai University. Mei Lanfang, who was the most famous performing artist in China for many years during the twentieth century, played female roles (the dan roles) in the performances, and he took the Peking Opera outside China and made it famous for the first time.17 Chang then accompanied Mei Lanfang on his six-month tour of the United States, during which Chang was invited to act as master of ceremonies. Chang had told Mei not to try to change his performance style for Western audiences but to act on stage just as he had in China. He also advised Mei on which dramas were particularly well suited for performance before a Western audience, such as Slaying the Tiger, the story of which was easily comprehensible even to those with no knowledge of Chinese. An opera that also was performed was The Fisherman’s Revenge. Chang was eager to initiate a press campaign before Mei performed on Broadway. He urged him to hire a professional producer who knew the American theatre and opera world (F. C. Kapakas). Before Mei Lanfang started his performances in the US Chang had given lectures on Chinese culture in various clubs in New York to prepare the visit.18 Chang even managed to see to it that the University