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Manchester Guardian
Cutting dated.
20 MAR 1999
193
THE CO-OPERATIVE MOVEMENT
IN CHINA
A "Guerrilla Industry”
From a Correspondent
There are signs that there is coming
out of the Chinese tragedy a new industrial revolution of an
uncom-
The
By
F 2513
166
Trade by Barter employ MARch 9a Hundred
men the units wifi Conform to the normal size of a Chinese village, which generally consists of about a hundred families. There is ample water power, and though the equip- ment will necessarily be primitive, at any rate at first. the co-operation among the units will be sufficiently organised to make possible specialised production. The first task of the European Advisers
co-operatives will be to produce goods that can be offered to the farmers in When such need was matched by exchange for food. The trade will be monly hopeful kind. Eighty small such resources it was no doubt inevit-, largely barter, but the farmers are industrial co-operatives have been
able that some scheme should be born ready enough to give food for such articles as furniture, lamps, clothing. founded in various parts of China in to bring them together. But the way Thus an immediate result will be the last few months as part of the of doing it might not have been so some small improvement in the stan- effort to replace the
hopeful for the future if a practical dard of life in the remote districts. devastated
idea had not come to a group of industry of the Eastern cities.
Such а co-operative movement eighty co-operatives are primarily an people influenced by social ideals as started before the industrial areas aspect of China's economic defence, well as by sympathy with China and were devastated could have been but they are also part of China's concern for her immediate needs. carried out only against the powerful national awakening.
This idea was that the general indus- resistance of the industrialists. Now trial life of China could best be the industrialists as such have ceased revived and kept alive on a system of to exist. Those among them who small co-operative units, with tem- were Chinese have lost their wealth; The story, as told by a visitor from porary equipment, capable of being the industrial workers are scattered; China, begins with the destruction of torn up and removed to a safer place and the ground is cleared for the China's painfully built industry. The whenever serious danger threatened co-operative experiment as it can fall of Shanghai meant in itself the them. A vivid phrase was coined as hardly ever have been in the world loss of 70 per cent of the country tary guerrillas.
the idea took hold. "We have mili- before, at least at a time when forces Why not guerrilla were in existence to seize the industrial equipment, and Nanking industry?" The group of people who opportunity. and Hankow completed the disaster.' set about translating the idea into The men and women to whom these achievement included four Europeans. industries gave employment streamed There was Mr. Edgar Snow, author of into Western
If the opportunity is exciting to China literally in "Red Star Over China," and his wife; millions. The number of refugees there was a former British Consul in idealists on the spot, it is far more from all the provinces occupied by Shanghai, now of Nanking, Mr. John promising for European commerce the Japanese has been estimated at Alexander, and there was a New than anyone could have expected. If 60,000,000—all seeking to be absorbed Zealander, Mr. Rewi Alley, who has the Japanese attack on China were to become one of the joint secretaries of succeed entirely the market would be
Japanese Destruction
into the hinterland.
A Promising Market
between
But the refugees of China have the organisation. The Chinese mem- closed. It seemed till recently that been recognised from the first as notibers are about the same in number. the Chinese could only resist success- a problem only but also an economic The idea received the ready support fully by such a fostering of national asset. They are going into territory of Chiang Kai-shek. The Govern- unity as would automatically produce which has tremendous undeveloped ment allocated five million Chinese a rigid State Socialism or Fascism. wealth. The agricultural population dollars for initial capital and a The new economy that now promises which must feed them is poor enough further half-million for the expenses to grow should be a liberal economy. by the standards of Europe, but it can of promotion. Eventually, it is far more in the tradition of China's grow more than it can consume of hoped, there will be set up at least agrarian brand of so-called Com- such food as the ordinary Chinese thirty thousand units.
That would munism. expect. The Government soon pro- mean the employment of three If European traders co-operate in duced its own plan for new heavy million men, each unit employing foundation can probably be laid for the ways that are open to them the industries, the products of which are about a hundred. Dr. H. H. Kung a profitable co-operation urgently needed to carry on the war, the Minister of Finance, is himsel China and Europe for future genera- and China needs hardly less urgently chairman of the board. Chinese and tions. The products of the new West every bit of wealth its people can British promoters have shared in the China industries will be available for produce to exchange for armaments work of getting local organisations export through Burma and Russia. and other foreign goods.
started. It has meant long-distance If the plans succeed Western China, travel, for the first societies widely scattered.
are which has great wealth of mercury, There are to be silver, and copper, will be more regional headquarters in Shensi thoroughly developed than it prob- Hunan, Kiangsi, and Szechwan. The ably would have been for years with- local leadership will be largely in the out the desperate stimulus that the hands of the men who successfully war disasters have brought. started
Many the farmers' co-operatives things will be needed from abroad, before the war began.
notably machines and machine tools, and the trade will be the foundation of the continued resistance to the Japanese invaders. At a time when so many sufferers are needing the democratic peoples' charity China offers a mutually profitable oppor- tunity of helping her to help herself.
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