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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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Reference :-

C.O.882/11

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON |

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO

C. 30001/27 E. [No. 17].

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No. 27.

The Officer Administering the Gurernment of Hong Kong to the Secretary of State for the Colonies,

(Secret.)

SIR,

(Received 27th December, 1927.)

Government House, Hong Kong, 24th November, 1927.

As I reported in my secret despatch of 18th November, 1927,* the departure of General Li Chai-sum for Shanghai was immediately followed by a rising against his lieutenant Wong Shiu-hung, whose men were disarmed or driven out of the city after a short struggle. There was little serious fighting and only a few casualties are reported. General Wong himself escaped to Hong Kong where he still remains.

2. At the time of writing the triumvirate Wong Kei-cheung, Sit Ngok and Li Fuk-Jam hold the city of Canton. They have ejected their opponents from Whampoa and the Bocca Tigris forts and control the river as well as the Canton-Kowloon railway, and probably the Canton-Hankow railway as far as Shiu Kwan. Wong Shiu-hung claims to have on his side a force of Kwangsi troops concentrated at Shiu-hing, the "Northern Expeditionary Force," a mixed body of doubtful allegiance, and the army of Chan Tsai-t'ong in the neighbour- hood of Swatow. Further fighting is expected but has not yet begun. 3. Meanwhile, Wong K'ei-cheung appears to have lost no time in consolidating his position. One of his first objectives was the arsenal at Shek Cheng, and he is said to have secured a large supply of rifles and ammunition at Bocca Tigris. With these and with the weapons taken from the troops of Wong Shiu-hung in Canton he is reported to have armed the semi-bandit forces of the Prasants' Organizations, the strike pickets, and such other outlaws as he can gather together, including some of Chan Kwing Ming's soldiers of fortune.

4. This Nung T'uen" or Peasants' Organization is a half-political. half-criminal body with communistic tendencies which originated in its present form during the struggle between Chan Kwing-ming and the "red" administration of Canton. The story goes that Borodin on his arrival in South China found some difficulty in grafting the conception of the class war on to existing conditions. He found the proletariat without difficulty, but there was no clearly defined body of capitalists to set up as the enemy. An enemy, however, was essep- tial and after some discussion he and his Chinese disciples decided to enlist the village elders and gentry in that capacity on the ground that they were reactionaries and landowners. Thus the Peasants' Organization was instituted and, once formed, grew rapidly and proved very profitable to its promoters. They preached the doctrine known as 3, 3, 4, that is to say the rent formerly paid by cultivators was to be divided thirty per cent. to the society, thirty per cent. to the tenant, and the remaining forty per cent, to the landlord. The gentry have not yielded without a struggle and throughout the province there

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village

has been constant friction between these Peasants' corps and " volunteers" (Man Tuen) maintained by the gentry in their defence. There can be no doubt that the systematic destruction of the influence of village elders which has proceeded ever since the institution of the Republic has been one of the most notable causes of the existing state of anarchy in the country districts.

5. While it is too early to attempt any definite summing up of the position, and certainly impossible to forecast the probable course of events, some estimate may be formed of the aims and objects of the The various individuals and groupe concerned in the recent coup. motive of the military commanders, in so far as it is not due merely to the desire to secure a larger share in the spoils of office, may be traced back to the struggle for domination between the Kuangtung and Kwangsi factions which has been in progress ever since the over- throw of the Manchus. The province of Kwangsi is not self-supporting and has always depended on assistance from Kuangtung. But the disappearance of any adequate central control has meant that only by actual dornination of Canton could the officials of Kwangsi secure the necessary pecuniary assistance. Thus the Cantonese had a two-fold grievance: not only were they governed by men from another province but also income was being diverted to Kwangsi which might have been expended in Kuangtung or directed into their own pockets. The military commanders have accordingly kept this aspect well to the fore declaring that their rising was merely against the tyranny of Wong Shiu-hung and not committing themselves on general political matters.

6. One factor in the situation is still uncertain, which concerns foreign interests perhaps more than any other; the attitude of the officials in power towards the labour unions. These were not slow to take advantage of the uncertainty of the situation. The coup took place on the 17th November, and on the 18th November, the Labour Depart- ment of the Municipal Kuomintang summoned a meeting of repre- sentatives of labour unions which, after denouncing Wong Shiu-hung, proceeded to pass the following resolutions: That the Party Purifica- tion movement (initiated by Li Chai-sum on 15th April), should be opposed; that the prisoners of 15th April, should be released; that the Northern Expedition should be pressed; that Kuangtung should be made a workers' paradise; and that Imperialism should be destroyed. Following the meeting a large crowd, waving red flags, attacked the premises of the Labour Representatives' Society and attempted to They were dis- eject the Reorganization Committee of that Union. persed by the police with a loss of two killed and four wounded. On 19th November, a bomb was thrown into the headquarters of the Strike Committee but all attempts by these disorderly elements to create a disturbance have so far been suppressed by the police. It is, how- ever, stated that the prisoners of the April coup have been released.

7. A third element is represented by the radical politicians who followed Wong Tsing-wai to Canton and remained there after his departure. That these men took part in the intrigues which led up to the rising appears certain; and Wong is freely accused of treachery It is in securing the removal of Li Chai-sum at the critical time.

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :--

C.O.882/11