MANCHURIA

Hokitika Guardian, 5 November 1931, Page 2

MANCHURIA

PRESENT POSITION.

THE CASE FOR JAPAN. A statement has been prepared by the Japanese Consulate-General, Svdoel, to explain, to the average Australian, Japon’ s position in Manchuria and her attitude towards C'h na in the hope that students of Far Eastern affairs wid be able to .build up a fundamental knowledge, bv which they can grasp the read significance of events occurring there from time to time.

The recent disturbance in Manchuria, which was started by the destruction of a portion of the Japanese, railway b.v the Chines.' Army and which is now fast assuming greater importance in the eyes of the world, deserves more careful and fundamental examination than it appears, on the face of it to warrant, says tinstatement. The dispute, which at first seemed to he only a. local affair, is now past any local so’ution, became on the one hand, of the most intense anti-Japanese boycott movement fostered by the national organ of the Chinese Government throughout the length and breadth of the whole country of China, and, on the other liainl. of the grim determination on the part of Japan to exterminate all the evi' causes that underlie this hold step oi the part of China, which is nothing but an indication of China’s project to sweep Japan out of Manchuria once and for all. WAR OF 1904-5. In order to grasp clearly and thoroughly the present situation, one has to go back at least more than thirtyfive years in Manchurian history, to scrutinise flic triangular relations between Japan, Russia and China, whic-J fina : iy built up the specific and unique conditions now prevailing in that territory, and also to realise the tremendous part p ayed by Japan in the development of that partieuluar region.

As' a result of the great struggle e," 1994-5, which cost Japan hundreds ov millions of pounds and half a milion lives, the menace of Russia to both China and Japan wa s removed. By the treaty of peace, Russia, recognising the vital interests Japan has in the south-rn part of Manchuria, conceded to the latter the lease of the Liaotung Peninsula and a’so the southern half of the- South Alanelmrhn Railway, together with a l l the mlorests and privileges attached ihereto, this arrangement between Japan a k! Russia was subsequently recognised bv Chinn herse’f [December, 1f.05). That is the brief history of how Japan came into the picture in Man’V" • ! ' » onuria.

DEVELOPMENT OF MANCHURIA

For more than a quarter of a century, Japan put her whole heart it to the development of Manchuria. The Japanese capital poured into this ~erritory now exceeds £200.000,Oaf) no moan sum cf money considering that Japan herself is not at all a very rich country. Japanese' residents there now number more than a million, includin'! those in the ’eased territory of K'vnntnnp;.

The efficiency arc! the benefits of the Japanese management of South Mnnehurm have been Vyond criticism. The South Manchuria Railway Ompanv, with its canital of £20.000000, its enterprises including various

cultural works such as modern hospitals, research laboratories and educational institutions, is a thing of wonder in this otherwise uncivilised land. The port of Dairen is perhaps the best equipped harbour in China, and, in the mater of volume, of track, comes next only to Shanghai. Since the participation of Japan in its development, /Manchuria has become tlic- only place in China where people are free from the incessant warfare of the war-lords, which is s° characteristic of presert-day China. How the Chinese sought the peace and prosperity which were to he enjoyed under the Japanese protection is best illustrat'd by the fact that in recent years there ha s been a steady flow of population from China proper to this northern province outside the Gr at Wall, aggregating millions—perhaps the greatest lntma’n tide since the great migration of races that swept Europe more that -1000 years ago.

The sudden rise of power of the Nationalist party (Kuo -Min Tang) in 1926 turned a new leaf in the history of China, and incidentally marked a turning point in the Mamliurii question as between China and Japan. The success of this political move .cut, originally led by that great revo’utionist, Sun Yat Sen, and sti' gevpicntl.v assisted for a time by the agents of Soviet Russia, was so remarkable that those for ign Powers which wished for the welfare of China were relieved to see the possibility oi the ultimate unfiication of that country out of its age-lrng political chars. At hist a true national consciousness s-emed to have awakened in the hearts of the Chinese who had never before known how to band themse.ves into a civilised nation. ANT f-F ORF. FG X CAA I P AlO X. These sympathetic foreign Powers wen’, however, soon to get a Hide shock at the vicious and persistent anti-foreign campaign that was planned and conducted by the headquarters of the Nationalists. China contended that, she had long been mercil.ssly exploited by the foreigneis. the extraterritoriality, the Lit. rnatienal Settlements at various open ports, the foreign control of the Customs bouses, in short, all the rights granted to foreigners under the so-r-a 1cd’“unequal treaties” were, she claimed, nothing but the usurpation of Chinese sovereign rights- They wer” the very thin that hampered the unification and modernisation of China. Hence the “movement to rrstore national rights.” Japan, which had on'v thirty years before managed to. liberate herself from foreign domination, naturally felt a genuine sympathy towards China in this national struggle and ambition on her part to regain her lost rights and privileges. On more than one occasion, the Japanese Government have made it clear that it is their intention to do all that they call •to assist China in this laudable endeavour. Japan, however, expects that China will, as did Japan half a century ago, first endeavour to establish within her borders national entity by the firm and determined effort of all her nationals in building up a. social.order in tbe manner adopted by all modern civilised nations. In this way alone, Japan maintains, can China realise her glorious aspiration ? Any excessive methods adopted by China for this purpose have always l>‘en resented bv Japan, such as China’s treating international treaties as something similar* to 'scraps of /papev, or her wanton repudiation of her treaty undertakings and universal y recognised international obligations.

Notwithstanding the general foreign resentment, however, the methods adopted by the Nationalists in this “movement to restore national rights” have always been most audacious and ruthless, and in these tactics the Chinese were masters of the situtation and all foreigners were sometimes completely at their mercy. Great Chinese suffered most along the Yar.gtse river, where the best part of her interests lay. Japan was the next victim at Hankow, Nanking, Tsinan and elsewhere. And the recent outburst in Manchuria i s nothing but the culmination of this anti-foreign movement as specially directed against Japan. HOSTILITY TO JAPAN.

The firm hold of Japan on Manchuria lias long been a source of irritation to the Nationalists. They have cherished the belief that Japan’s superior position in economic Manchuria would prejudice their ultimate sharing in the enormous wealth fostered hv various Japanese enterprises. Japan, therefore, was to be forced out and tlie Nationalists were to step into her slices. !

With the tacit co-operation o f General Chang Sueh-h'ang, the young war-lord of Manchuria, every conceivable method of irritation has been employed by China to make the situation impossible for Japan.

The careful study of recent itieicl nts can only lead to the conclusion that tlie destruction of the Japanese railway by the Chinese Army Wfls Pot at all a casual net committed on the impulse of the moment, but that its cause lies deep in the defily rate plot of the Chinese to oust Japan’s economic activities from Manchuria. Japan, on her part, is equally determined to ho’d out against ary unwarranted attempt to jeopardise her position in the Far East. In Manchuria are involved some of her most vital interests. They are vital in that they directly affect the national existence of the Japanese. And this conviction is firmly held by every member of the nation.

To those who profess tlie sligthest knowledge of tlie Ear Eastern question, it is unin. eessary to reiterate that Japan has no “territorial pretensions” whatever as regards Manchuria. “Equal opportunity and the open door” is the traditional policy that has been maintained by every Japanese Governm.nt. All Japan wants is that due respect be paid by China to the numerous treaty rights clue to Japanese people in that territory, and also that security be assured to the lives and property of Japanese there.

In dea’ing with the recent antiJapanese offences inspired by the responsible leaders of National China, Japan has throughout maintained an attitude of the utmost tolerance and conciliation, .and this attitude will never be abandoned. On the contrary. upon the outbreak of the trouble, the Chinese leaders immediate’y plunged into their favourite tactics of fantastic; propaganda to load the credulous minds oL tlie world with many unfounded or grossly exaggerated reports concerning Japan’s action. They also started the most intensive and extensive anti-Japanese boycott all over China, ns a result of which the normal relations between Japan atul China are virtually at a standstill.

Japan cannot tolerate this anti Japanese campaign. It is a me

to the peace of the Far East and of the whole world. Japan demands the immediate suspension of the boycott, which will have tlie effect of relaxing tlie tension of feeling between the two nations, thus preparing the way for an amicable settlement of the mattei.