Declaration Against the Obstruction of the Red Army's Eastward Anti-Japanese Advance
Compiled from the merged Wikisource corpus; dating follows the standard catalogue. See Guide · Editions & Language for the sourcing rule.
Introduction
In 1936, the Central Soviet Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic and the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army issued this declaration over the obstruction of the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army's eastern advance. It accuses Chiang Kai-shek and Yan Xishan of blocking the Red Army from going east to resist Japan and of attacking the Shaanxi-Gansu Soviet rear, and says the two are carrying out Japan's joint anti-Communist line. It then proposes stopping the civil war, convening a national anti-Japanese congress, and forming a national-defence government and allied anti-Japanese armies.
Patriotic compatriots of all China!
Since the five provinces of North China ceased to exist in fact if not in name, the bandits of Japanese imperialism have been advancing at speed toward their goal of swallowing the whole of North China and the whole of China.
At this emergency juncture, with the nation facing ruin and the race extinction, the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet People's Republic and the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army demanded again and again: stop all civil war; unite as one, Red Army and White Army alike, in resisting Japan; convene a national congress of delegates for resisting Japan and saving the nation, to form a national-defence government and an anti-Japanese allied army; and concentrate the main forces of the Red Army in Hebei, so as to halt the advance of Japanese imperialism. In answer to the urgent demand of the whole nation to resist Japan and save it from extinction, the Central Government of the Soviet People's Republic and the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army organised the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army of the Chinese People's Red Army to cross the Yellow River and march east, to resist Japan and punish the traitors, and to go in front of the anti-Japanese compatriots of the whole country and voice their indignation. But Yan Xishan of Shanxi, willing to act as the running dog of Japanese imperialism, mobilised all his armed strength to bar the Red Army's road of resistance. And Chiang Kai-shek, arch-traitor at the head of the traitors, threw in more than ten divisions to help Yan Xishan attack the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army of the Chinese People's Red Army, and further ordered the forces of Zhang Xueliang, Yang Hucheng and others to push north and disrupt the anti-Japanese rear of our Shaanxi-Gansu soviet area!
Look! When Japanese imperialism was swallowing the five provinces of North China and the Japanese and Manchukuo armies were pouring out along the Beiping-Tianjin-Chahar line, Chiang Kai-shek ordered his armies to withdraw from those five provinces altogether. But as soon as the Red Army marched east against Japan and thereby endangered Japanese imperialism's hold on the five provinces, Chiang Kai-shek moved his armies into Shanxi to attack the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army of the Chinese People's Red Army. Everyone can now see that this is a new poisonous scheme of Japanese imperialism for swallowing North China — the concrete application of what Japanese imperialism calls the three Hirota principles. The Sino-Japanese-“Manchukuo” joint “anti-communist” agreement is now being resolutely carried out by the arch-traitor Chiang Kai-shek.
The Central Government of the Chinese Soviet People's Republic and the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army declare to all patriotic compatriots of the country: Japanese imperialism seeks to destroy China under the banner of Sino-Japanese-“Manchukuo” joint “anti-communism,” and is mobilising all the traitors and country-sellers to attack the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army of our Chinese People's Red Army. For the freedom, independence and territorial integrity of the Chinese nation, we swear to throw our whole strength into wiping out the traitor armies that bar our vanguard army's road of resistance and disrupt its anti-Japanese rear, to shatter Japanese imperialism's new plan for the destruction of China, and to win a speedy direct war against Japan. We call further upon all patriotic compatriots to rise as one, resist Japan and punish the traitors, answer and uphold the eastward advance of the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army of the Chinese People's Red Army, and so save China from destruction. Victory in the Red Army's war of resistance and punishment is the victory of every patriotic compatriot in China — the victory of the Chinese nation.
Stop all civil war! Unite as one in resisting Japan! Create a people's front of all parties and groups for resisting Japan!
Oppose the Sino-Japanese-“Manchukuo” “joint anti-communism” that means the destruction of China!
Ally with the Soviet Union and the Communists, resist Japan as one, and win China's independence and freedom!
Convene a national congress for resisting Japan and saving the nation; form a national-defence government and an anti-Japanese allied army!
Support the Red Army in moving swiftly to direct war against Japan!
Support the concentration of the main forces of the Red Army in Hebei to fight Japan!
Concentrate the army, navy and air force of the whole nation in Hebei to fight Japan!
The base text is the Wikisource version, signed at the end by 'Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Central Soviet Government of the Chinese Soviet Republic' and 'Zhu De, Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army'. The two sign jointly in the names of two institutions, as was common for declarations of this period.
Down with the traitors Chiang Kai-shek and Yan Xishan, who bar the Red Army's road of resistance and disrupt its anti-Japanese rear!
People of all China, arm yourselves! Down with Japanese imperialism, down with the traitors!
Long live the victorious revolutionary national war of resistance!
Chairman of the Central Government of the Chinese Soviet People's Republic
Mao Zedong
Chairman of the Revolutionary Military Commission of the Chinese Anti-Japanese Red Army
Zhu De
5 April 1936
The latter half lists proposals: stop the civil war and unite against Japan; ally with Russia and the Communists and unite against Japan; convene a national anti-Japanese congress and form a national-defence government and allied anti-Japanese armies; support the Red Army to fight Japan directly without delay; concentrate the nation's land, sea and air forces in Hebei — followed by several slogan-like lines.
Groups named include the Anti-Japanese Vanguard Army, the Allied Anti-Japanese Armies, the National Defence Government, and the troops of Yan Xishan, Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng — the fighting units on the North China battlefield. The declaration was written when the eastern advance was blocked; the matter it describes continues into the next piece's telegram.