Dr. Sun Yat Sen

 

 

Throughout history, China has always existed in a state of political turmoil. For centuries the Chinese were subject to the control of corrupt warlords and an ineffective Ching government. The nation had also been exploited of its wealth and resources through the European "spheres of influence". Therefore it was almost inevitable that the Chinese Revolution of 1911 occurred. As in all other revolutions of its magnitude, the movement was driven by a mixture of new political ideas, a strong desire to end injustices within the government, and a number of influential revolutionary figures. One such man was Dr. Sun Yat-sen.

Sun Yat-sen was essentially the master behind a plan to restore China to the "common" people and to create what would eventually be called the Republic of China. Sun Yat-sen, hailed by some as the "Father of the Republic of China", was born on November 12, 1866, in Hsiang-shan County, near the city of Canton in southern China. Due their close proximity to Macao, a large trading port at the time, the people of Hsiang-shan County often came in contact with foreigners and emigrated overseas. In 1879, Dr. Sun left his home town and traveled to Hawaii, where he joined his elder brother who was already living there. There he studied at one of the missionary schools and later graduated from Oahu College. After completing his education in Hawaii, he returned to China, and began his studies at the College of Medicine for Chinese in Hong Kong. Having been previously assimilated into the western culture, Sun Yat-sen accepted the Christian faith and was baptized in 1884. That same year he consented to an arranged marriage to Soong Ching-ling.

In 1892, Sun Yat-sen graduated from the College of Medicine for Chinese as a medical doctor. Upon returning to China in 1892, at first to practice as a medical doctor, Sun Yat-sen instead became increasingly involved in the political scene. Sun had predicted the decline of the Manchu government and saw the time fit for a revolution and the establishment of a new government. During this same time period, the Boxer Rebellion had attracted much attention throughout the world, especially from those countries that yielded "spheres of influence" in China. When Empress Ci Xi supported the Boxers and declared war on all foreign powers, Europeans defeated the Boxers with their superior technology and military strength. After the Rebellion, Europeans naturally enforced tighter controls over the Manchu government and trade, and forced the Chinese to pay 450 million taels of gold as indemnity- a payment almost 12 times the country's annual revenue and enough to cancel all hopes of economic progress in China. It is in the midst of all this chaos that Dr. Sun Yat-sen began planning his own revolution. In 1894, he had written a letter to Viceroy Li Hung-chang in Tientsin outlining ways in which China's government could be improved. After receiving no reply, he journeyed to Beijing where he discovered a government that had done little to serve its purpose. Sun Yat-sen then returned to Hawaii, filled with revolutionary ideas, and organized the Revive China Society.

The society soon established a branch in Hong Kong posing as an "Agricultural Study Society", and began plotting to seize control of the government. Members planned to secretly ship guns into Hong Kong, seize the government offices, and kill the officials. However, word leaked out and the plan was foiled. Sun was able to escape to Japan and avoid arrest. But in 1896, when he went to London, he was kidnapped and imprisoned by the Chinese for 12 days. Luckily he was able to send word for help and was later released. The next few months, Sun Yat-sen was able to spent time at the British Museum library where he formulated his most important work- the Three People's Principles. Although, Sun Yat-sen's first efforts at a revolution would only be one of several to fail, the Revive China Society had successfully cast new light on a growing revolutionary movement in China.

In 1905, Sun Yat-sen returned to Japan from Europe and began forming another revolutionary society known as the Tong Meng Hui- the "China Revolutionary League". The League was formed from many of his former revolutionaries in Japan, and many of the young Chinese intellectuals studying there at the time. Many of these students studied in the Kanda section of Tokyo and formed a closely knit community after facing rejection from the Japanese students because of their apparent "backwardness"; a circumstance that actually helped to strengthen the organization. The League soon began raising rebellions such as the 1906 rebellion in Hunan Province, but was often outnumbered by Ching troops. During the same time, the Ching dynasty under the control of the young Emperor Pu Yi (often referred to as the last emperor), had grown fearful of the people, and was making preparations for a constitutional government. Political unrest continued to escalate. Meanwhile, in the fall of 1911, Sun Yat-sen's Tong Meng Hui was involved in an important uprising in Wuchang. Wuchang rebels seized control of the government on what would be later known as "Double Ten Day", and changed the name to the Republic of China. Promptly there after, Sun Yat-sen returned to China on January 1, 1912 and was elected provisional president of the new Republic. He remained in office until February 12, of the same year when he and Emperor Pi Yi agreed to relinquish their power in favor of Yuan Shi-kai, a prominent military organizer.

However, much to Dr. Sun Yat-sen's disappointment, Yuan would prove to be a ruthless leader, and eventually proclaimed himself Emperor in December 1914. In 1896, Sun Yat-sen derived a formula for government that would later become the fundamental basis for the government in China. Dr. Sun's western influence can also be observed in the democratic ideology found in the Three People's Principles. The Three People's Principles are essentially: nationalism, the creation of a new state; democracy, the creation of a government upholding democracy; and the people's livelihood, the primary concern being land reform (Hoyt, 32). Sun also advocated a "five power constitution" which included the examination and censorial branches in addition to the executive, legislative and judicial branches, for purpose of control. Sun Yat-sen understood that China was not immediately ready for complete democracy.

In outlining the Three People's Principles he had planned for the government to first establish military control. Over a period of time, the people would then be encouraged to participate in government and the election process. The government was also responsible for the economy in China. Unlike other democracies which preferred a policy of "laisse-faire", the economy was not "self-controlled". Sun Yat-sen had originally designed the Three People's Principles to be flexible to changing circumstances. However, this also meant that there could be many different interpretations, and this often served as the source of many conflicts between the political parties in China- the Guomindang and the Chinese Communist party.