Dr Sun Yat-sen & Japan

Dr Sun Yat-sen's activities in Japan where he stayed for a total of 11 years between 1895 and 1924( He went to Japan 15 times). Dr Sun was active in the cities of Tokyo, Nagasaki, Kobe and Yokohama, where his experiences are thought to have shaped his ideas of revolution. He led the historic revolution of 1911 that overthrew the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), ending China's autocratic monarchical system that had been in place for more than 2,000 years. Sun died in Beijing on March 12, 1925. His body was temporarily kept in the then Central Park, which was renamed Zhongshan (Sun Yat-sen) Park in 1928.

“The relationship between China and Japan is one of common existence or extinction. Without Japan, there would be no China; without China, there would be no Japan. … Under the principle of Pan-Asianism, Japan and China can together develop the natural resources in the West of the Pacific, while under the Monroe Doctrine the United States can unify authority in the East of that ocean. ... By a concerted effort of these three Powers disarmament might some day be affected, and, going one step further, permanent peace of the world secured.”
- Sun Yat-sen, The Vital Problem of China (1917)

Despite Dr Sun was a Christian and pro-American, British, USA and the west, did not support Dr Sun and his effort in building the republic, and the later unification. Dr Sun was educated and trained in Hawaii and Hong Kong, influenced by the western ideology and culture. British and USA however supported Yuan Shi-kai(袁世凯), a former Qing general who was the second (right after Sun Yatsen) President of the Republic of China, and his short-lived attempt to revive the Chinese monarchy, with himself as the "Great Emperor of China.". China was divided. British and USA also did not support the Republic of China under Dr Sun or his government.

(Note: In mid-1941, the United States government financed the creation of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), or Flying Tigers, to replace the withdrawal of Soviet volunteers and aircraft, was the initiative during 2nd Sino-Japanese War. But when China was divided after 1949, USA whole heatedly supported Chiang Kai-shek in Taiwan and his government, despite it was a non democratic one party state. I wonder is it the charm of Song May Ling or the remain effect of pre war divided China foreign policy, that continue to cold war?......another question is without the attack of Pearl Harbor, will USA entered the Pacific war or WW2 solely to help China?....)

Dr Sun and Japan

British and USA, have their own agenda....Dr Sun had to seek help from Japan, China's closest neighbor, and later when Japanese government failed to support, he request help from Russia communist. Dr Sun was desperate for financial help. Japan was very close to Dr Sun's heart, he lived in Japan for nearly 10 years, some said 15 years; he had many friends from Japan who whole heatedly support him in revolution; he even reported to have Japanese wife and daughter; he married in Tokyo with Song Ching Ling. In short, he had fond memory of Japan, and until his death, he is always dreaming that Japan will be a great friend of Modern China....but the reality was different....

Initially Dr Sun was having rivalry with Kang U Wei in his effort to obtain support from Japan. But Japan,and their politician; and The Black Dragon Society (こくりゅうかい, Kyūjitai; 黑龍會; Shinjitai: 黒龍会, kokuryūkai). All these had their agenda to divide China. Many progressive Japanese individuals also supported Dr Sun, and he was able to beat the Chinese reformists, and won the support of Japan. Japan government however withdrawn their support due to change in their foreign policy. After the confidence of their military victory over Russia in Russo-Japanese War, it become a power in east Asia that was able to beat the west; they perceived that they are equal with the west and higher level than fellow Asian countries ; they changed their foreign policy toward China,a long hidden agenda to divide China began to manifest. Dr Sun lost the Japanese government's support, despite some individual Japanese friends still remained close to him....Kokuryukai was one of the force that inserting influence on Japanese militarism, and Dr Sun's political road for China, their hidden agenda was to take Manchuria and Mongolia..... some historian wonder why Dr Sun can alliance with them, and did not see the danger, what was in Dr Sun's mind?.

Kokuryukai(黒竜会) or The Black Dragon Society(黑龙会, こくりゅうかい）

The Kokuryūkai was founded in 1901 by Uchida Ryohei, and was descended from the Genyōsha(玄洋社). Uchida Ryōhei(内田良平),b 11 February 1873 – d 26 July 1937, was a follower of Genyōsha founder Mitsuru Toyama(頭山満). Kokuryūkai's name is derived from the Amur River, called Heilongjiang or "Black Dragon River" in Chinese (黑龍江), read as Kokuryū-kō in Japanese. Heilongjiang is the river in Manchuria. Heilongjiang contains China's northernmost point (in Mohe County along the Amur) and easternmost point (at the junction of the Amur and Ussuri Rivers). Its public goal was to support efforts to drive the Russian Empire out of east Asia, south of the Amur River, which also means to conquer the Manchulia, China. Not only Manchulia, they are also eyeing for Siberia, Mongolia. It is a prominent paramilitary, ultra nationalist right-wing group in Japan, which later developed into Japanese militarism(日本軍国主義, Nihon gunkoku shugi).

The Kokuryūkai initially made strenuous efforts to distance itself from the criminal elements of its predecessor, the Genyōsha. As a result, its membership included Cabinet Ministers and high-ranking military officers as well as professional secret agents. However, as time passed, it found the use of criminal activities to be a convenient 'means to an end' for many of its operations.

The Society published a journal, and operated an espionage training school, from which it dispatched agents to gather intelligence on Russian activities in Russia, Manchuria, Korea and China. It also pressured Japanese politicians to adopt a strong foreign policy. The Kokuryukai also supported Pan-Asianism, and lent financial support to revolutionaries such as Sun Yat-sen, and Emilio Aguinaldo.

During the Russo-Japanese War, annexation of Korea and Siberian Intervention, the Imperial Japanese Army made use of the Kokuryūkai network for espionage, sabotage and assassination. They organized Manchurian guerrillas against the Russians from the Chinese warlords and bandit chieftains in the region, the most important being Marshal Chang Tso-lin. The Black Dragons waged a very successful psychological warfare campaign in conjunction with the Japanese military, spreading disinformation and propaganda throughout the region. They also acted as interpreters for the Japanese army.

The Kokuryūkai assisted the Japanese spy, Colonel Motojiro Akashi. Akashi, who was not directly a member of the Black Dragons, ran successful operations in China, Manchuria, Siberia and established contacts throughout the Muslim world. These contacts in Central Asia were maintained through World War II. The Black Dragons also formed close contact and even alliances with Buddhist sects throughout Asia.

During the 1920s and 1930s, the Kokuryūkai evolved into more of a mainstream political organization, and publicly attacked liberal and leftist thought. Although it never had more than several dozen members at any one time during this period, the close ties of its membership to leading members of the government, military and powerful business leaders gave it a power and influence far greater than most other ultranationalist groups.

Initially directed only against Russia, in the 1930s, the Kokuryūkai expanded its activities around the world, and stationed agents in such diverse places as Ethiopia, Turkey, Morocco, throughout southeast Asia and South America, as well as Europe and the United States.

(source: extract from wikipedia)

The Kokuryukai also supported Pan-Asianism, and lent financial support to revolutionaries such as Sun Yat-sen, and Emilio Aguinaldo. Dr Sun was very close to Kokuryūkai initially, and fell into the traps on his eagerness to obtain foreign fund, and his support for ideology of Pan Asian....and perceived Japan as the leader of the Pan Asia bloc, which will help him and modern China. Remember Dr Sun know no Japanese when he went to Japan, to understand the actual goal of Kokuryukai. Otherwise he will not involve with them, that was the initial mistake; and he was forced to accept the symbiotic relationship initially to achieve his dream of overthrowing Manchu, this objective was incidentally also the goal of Kokuryukai. Both had the same objective, to overthrow the Manchu. The dangerous path Dr Sun took....like riding at the back of tiger....Kokuryukai actually had wider agenda which directly conflict with the interest of new modern China.

The support of the west was lacking

Dr Sun was educated in the West; nourished in Japan politic and nationalism. He had high hope that the west and Japan will help him in his revolution and the new modern China. By 1921 Sun had become president of the southern government. His efforts to obtain aids from the Western democracies were ignored and in 1921 he turned to the Soviet Union, which had recently achieved its own revolution. Sun Yat Sen liked the Russians very much, as they were the only country to offer China assistance, and treated China as equal. Some said Sun Yat Sen felt that a lot of the Soviet ideas were much like his own. He believed in a form of Chinese Socialism which would stem from reform, but not through class conflict as in the Russian model. Dr Sun may had changed from pro western democracy to pro socialism?. Russia was not a genuine supporter either, they support both Dr Sun and Chinese Communist Party, hidden agenda like USA, Japan for a divided China; China was too large for them that they have phobia for a strong China. The fear persist until today........the political perception of the global powers.

When the west and Japan failed him. He was helpless and in dilemma, the last resort was to Russian communist, which was another power eying for divided China....

It was a difficult struggle for Dr Sun and his supporters without the support of foreign western aids on his dream of a western republic in China. Sun was later convinced that the only hope for a unified China lay in a military conquest from his base in the south, followed by a period of political tutelage that would culminate in the transition to democracy. He established the Whampoa Military Academy (黃埔軍校) near Guangzhou for the purpose. The military academy was officially opened on June 16, 1924. Dr Sun Yat-sen delivered a speech that was later to become the lyrics of the national anthem of the Republic of China. The song is sometimes known as "San Min Chu-i" or "Three Principles of the People".

Consequently, until his death in 1925, Sun prepared for the later Northern Expedition. Dr Sun Yat-sen died without achievement of building a Chinese republican country, until today.....and the democracy champion did not help him when he need their help at the most urgent moment. He had to obtain help from a communist, Russia; who had similar hidden agenda to divide China, like Japan, British and other countries from the west. Where is the democracy advocate who talk about human right and democracy?.....shit...they talk about hidden agenda of political benefit for dividing China....

The history is like the situation of Libya today.....behind all democracy and human right advocates, is the hidden agenda of political benefits,especially petrol politic. Divided China is still the hidden agenda of many global politician....

Some said Dr Sun had changed since his failure to build a western republic; when the west failed to support him; he had changed to use force to build his dream, when his main source of support come from secret societies from Japan and overseas; some even said he was a dictator like Mao and Chiang .... especially the pro-independence Taiwan "Chinese", belittled his image, said that he was not fit to be father of China. Some said he gave concession to Japan and foreign countries on the issue of Manchuria, Mongolia to achieve his political goal; they said he seems to support the Japanese agenda of dividing China....some foreign political opportunists even took advantage of his speeches and hand writing to justify their agenda.....

He may fall into political traps of foreign countries; for his eagerness to form a new China. He may make some conception mistakes on his political knowledge initially, but he make effort to rectify the mistakes or his wrong perceptions. He missed some, he make mistakes, but his dream for new modern China is sincere and clear. He may not known China well initially(as he was from the south and most of time not in China). But his goal was clear. As a human being, with complicated political situation in China during the era; it was not easy....he did changed at different stages of his life. It was tough, for him; and for the new China. China is not a simple country, but with long history of tradition and civilization. Old China was an empire and kingdom, not modern national identity; with his unique way of administration system,foreign policy, and political structure; which was difficult for the west to understand, even until today. He went through the agony of role conflict, ideology conflict, and nationalism conflict....

I wonder he ever thinking of returning to medical practice and give up during his tough journey to built a strong nation....he got nothing in his life but had given his life for his dream, a dream for a strong China.....

One fact remained, China was still divided until today......

Dr Sun’s only support were from oversea Chinese and some Japanese friends from Pan Asian activists; and Miyazaki Tōten, and Homer Lea.....That is why he once said " Oversea Chinese is the mother of Chinese revolution"......

He was not a successful politician in political history.....even as Father of Modern China. Today China is still divided, and many global politician still hoping for a more divided China..... there was tears and disappointment when he died, died of fatigue(resulted in liver damage) from his effort for a united China...and the betrayal from his belief in western democracy.....

The only comfort for him is that, many Chinese in the country,and many oversea Chinese were still behind him; Miyazaki Tōten and Homer Lea, his faithful friends were still behind him, and his individual Japanese friends were still faithful behind him ....they are all individuals who believed in betterment of human race, regardless of races and nationality, without hidden agenda.....

.....and there are many Chinese all over the world today, still dreaming of unification of China, like path taken by Germany, in their individual dream ...for them Dr Sun is a unification factor. Dr Sun become an international figure not for Chinese, but for many in the global world today....







The moral of the story, from political history; we can understand who had divided the world; who had created the war; and who had advocated democracy and human right; who had developed and nourished extremists and dictators?.......

Let us ponder, who was real champion of democracy, who was he demon of democracy.......

Suggested articles/websites:
1. Amur Annexation, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amur_Annexation( This article deals with the annexation of the southeast corner of Siberia by Russia from China in 1858-60. The two areas involved are the Priamurye between the Amur River and the Stanovoy Range to the north and the Primorye which runs down the coast from the Amur mouth to the Korean border. Russians gained 350,000 square miles (910,000 km2) of territory. With the exception of Muravyov's rather ceremonial cannonade at Aigun, they had apparently not fired a single shot.)
2. Manchuria, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manchuria(To the north, the boundary with Russian Siberia was fixed by the Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689) as running along the watershed of the Stanovoy Mountains. South of the Stanovoy Mountains, the basin of the Amur and its tributaries belonged to the Qing Empire. North of the Stanovoy Mountains, the Uda Valley and Siberia belonged to the Russian Empire. In 1858, a weakening Qing Empire was forced to cede Manchuria north of the Amur to Russia under the Treaty of Aigun)
3. Heilongjiang, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heilongjiang