SDHF Newsletter No.424 The Road to the Greater East Asian War No. 38 Ch.10-4

THE ROAD TO THE GREATER EAST ASIAN WAR
Nakamura Akira, Dokkyo University Professor Emeritus
(English Translation: Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact)
Part 38, Chapter 10: The Manchurian Incident-4

May 23, 2025

Historically, when Chinese rulers suffered defeat, they fled, abandoning their nation and their compatriots. The Liutiagou Incident was no exception. After every single official of the Northeastern government in Liaoning province had disappeared, the Liaoning Peace Preservation Committee came into being. Yuan Jinkai became the committee’s chairman, and Yu Zhonghan was among those appointed to assist him. Manchurian leaders began declaring independence: Xi Qia in Jilin province on September 26, Zhang Jinghui in the Special Administrative Region of the Eastern Provinces on September 27, Tang Yulin in Rehe province and Yu Zhishan in Dongbian on September 29, and Zhang Haipeng in Taonan on October 1.

Japanese Foreign Minister Shidehara and War Minister Minami Jirō issued instructions on September 25 stating that “it is strictly prohibited to have any connection with the movement for promoting a new regime in Manchuria.” Japanese civilian and military officials heeded them, and avoided involvement in the independence movement. But as the trend toward an independent Manchuria became an idée fixe in the minds of the Chinese, Manchurians, and Mongolians, the Japanese were no longer able to ignore it. The fact that declarations emanated from places other than Fentian and Jilin, regions where the Japanese military had no presence whatsoever, proves that the movement sprang up spontaneously from the Manchurian people.

On February 16 of 1932, the year after the Manchurian Incident, Gens. Zhang Jinghui, Zang Shiyi, Xi Qia, Ma Zhangshan and Tang Yulin, along with Qi Wang and Lingshen (both Inner Mongolians), and Zhao Xinbo, founded the Northeastern Administrative Council in Fengtian. The council became the basis for the new state, but as is obvious from those names, the planners were Chinese, Manchurians, and Mongols. There were no Japanese participants. On February 18 the committee declared independence for Manchuria, and elected Puyi sovereign by unanimous resolution. He was installed as head of Manzhouguo’s head of state on March 9, whereupon the first government of Manzhouguo was organized, with Zheng Xiaoxu as prime minister.

The Japanese government presented a rebuttal to the Lytton Report stating that “there are many instances in other continents where the presence of foreign forces has afforded the possibility of attaining independence, and where the independence has never been questioned.”

URL: 　 https://www.sdh-fact.com/book-article/2305/
PDF: 　 https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Road38E.pdf

Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact