Foreign Relations of the United States, 1947, The Far East: China, Volume VII

893.00/10–2247

The Ambassador in China (Stuart) to the Secretary of State

No. 1064

Nanking, October 22, 1947.
[Received October 30.]

Sir: I have the honor to enclose three memoranda with regard to current Government activities vis-à-vis the Democratic League. The memoranda express the growing concern of Democratic League leaders that complete suppression of the League as a political party is imminent. In this general connection the Department’s attention is drawn to the Embassy’s Despatch No. 730 of May 16 entitled, “Probable Course of Central Government Policy Toward Non-Kuomintang Political Groups.”

It will be noted from the enclosures that on October 15 the Ambassador took occasion to raise the question of repressive measures against the Democratic League with the Prime Minister who stated that he alone could not make any decision with regard to the request of the Democratic League that it be given opportunity to answer the charges brought against it by the Government through discussion of the problem with Government-appointed representatives. Chang Ch’un did say, however, that he would give careful consideration to the League’s proposal and consult with other concerned officials of the Government.

It will be noted from the enclosures that the present leaders of the League are concerned that they may not be able to forestall a drift of the younger and more radical members of the League to the left if current repressive measures against the organization continue. It will also be noted that in a conversation with an officer of the Embassy on October 17, Dr. Lo Lung-chi in adverting to the general question of American aid to China expressed the opinion that no program of American aid could succeed merely on the basis of being anti-Communist; that in order to be successful, a program of aid would have to take into consideration social and economic problems not necessarily related to the current civil war and that if these problems were ignored a purely military approach to the Chinese problem would be doomed to failure. In referring to the Democratic League, Dr. Lo expressed the opinion that it was in the long term interest of the United States to see that an essentially loyal political opposition in China was not arbitrarily suppressed merely because the Government accused it of being pro-Communist without being called upon to prove its case publicly.

Respectfully yours,

For the Ambassador:

William T. Turner

First Secretary of Embassy

[Enclosure 1]

Memorandum of Conversation, by the First Secretary of Embassy in China (Ludden)

[Nanking, October 14, 1947.]

Participants:	The Ambassador
	Chang Po-chun	}	Leaders of the Democratic League
	Shen Chun-Ju
	Lo Lung-chi
	R. P. Ludden, First Secretary of Embassy

In accordance with their request the Ambassador received Chang Po-chun, Shen Chun-Ju and Lo Lung-chi, leaders of the Democratic League, on the afternoon of October 14, 1947. At the Ambassador’s request I attended this meeting.

The League leaders called to express their misgivings at the current intensification of Government attacks on the Democratic League. The League leaders maintained that they are under condemnation of the Government as agents for the Chinese Communist Party and accused of actively agitating among student and labor groups on behalf of the Communists; they maintain that the Government’s attitude stems from falsified reports from the Kuomintang secret police. The League leaders maintain that they are the butt of these accusations and they have no means of defense in as much as they are forbidden the right of publication in China and communications which they have addressed to the Premier and the Generalissimo have been ignored. The Leaguers maintained that they can refute the Government accusation that they are stooges of the Communist Party but they have been given no opporunity to do to. They therefore appealed to the Ambassador to approach the Government on their behalf with a view to having Government appointed representatives meet with the League for the purpose of discussing outstanding issues between the Government and the Democratic League and for the added purpose of carrying out an objective study of the relationship between the Democratic League and the Chinese Communist Party. The Leaguers maintained adamantly that if the Government can establish the fact that there are Communist members of the League actively operating, the League will assume responsibility therefor and expel them publicly from the League. They state furthermore that they are willing, as the responsible leaders of the League, to voluntarily disband as a political party if the Government can show that the League is an agency of the Chinese Communist Party. The Leaguers suggested that perhaps the Ambassador would care to be a member of any possible Government-League Group appointed to study the question, or that he might at least care to attend its meetings as an observer.

The Ambassador expressed his thanks for the call of the League leaders and said that he was naturally interested in their problems and that he would consider with his staff their request that he appeal to either the Premier or the Generalissimo on their behalf. The Ambassador added, however, that he did not feel that it was within his province to act either as a member or an observer on any group that may be appointed to study the question.

It was obvious from the attitude of all the League leaders that they are gravely concerned about their future position and that they appear to feel that the present attacks on the League are but the forerunner to a decree outlawing it as an organization. They maintained that some of the younger members of the League are considerably more radical than the older members and the League leadership. They also feel that the increased repression which they are now experiencing will inevitably tend to increase this radicalism and the present leadership of the League may be overthrown. They also feel that the outlawing of the League at this time and its being driven underground would merely tend to drive the League membership into the arms of the Chinese Communists. They hold that this would be to the interest neither of the Government nor to themselves as the present leaders of the League. They hold that they are attempting to be a nucleus of public-spirited progressive liberals who would like to attract like-minded people from all elements of the country and who wish only to carry on their activities openly and in a legal manner.

Following their departure, the Ambassador and I discussed their proposal and decided that the League was in fact suffering attacks from the Government which were in large degree unjustified and these attacks appeared to be a definite attempt on the part of the Government to suppress completely the last remaining open political opposition. The Ambassador expressed the view that the Government was on poor tactical ground in acting in a manner which might well drive the League underground and thus swell the ranks of the Chinese Communist Party with many intelligent and politically conscious professors and students. The Ambassador then stated that he would mention the matter to Chang Ch’un on an informal basis because he did not think it was a matter on which to approach the Generalissimo because he felt that the Generalissimo at this time is tending more and more to throw such matters into the hands of the Executive Yuan.

[Enclosure 2]

Memorandum by the First Secretary of Embassy in China (Ludden)

[Nanking,] October 16, 1947.

The Ambassador informed me today that on October 15 he took the occasion of a visit to the Prime Minister to raise the question of repressive measures against the Democratic League and to relate to the Prime Minister their presentation of their case as expressed in an interview with the Ambassador on October 14 (see Memorandum of Conversation of October 14).

The Ambassador told Chang Ch’un that he was speaking informally and more as an old friend of the Prime Minister than as an American official. The Ambassador made the suggestion that the Democratic League request for a conference between Government appointed representatives and representatives of the League be favorably considered primarily for the sake of the Government itself. The Prime Minister admitted having received a letter from the League leaders some two or three days previously but he said that he alone could not make a decision.

The Prime Minister reviewed the grievances of the Government against the League along the lines generally followed by the Government in recent public statements and expressed his personal belief that while individual members or leaders of the League might be different, the party as a whole was so strongly anti-Government and pro-Communist in sympathies that they constituted a serious hindrance to the Government’s present efforts and could scarcely be regarded as a constructive factor in any solution of the present internal problems of the country. He said, however, that he would give careful thought to the League’s proposal and consult with other concerned officials of the Government.

[Enclosure 3]

Memorandum of Conversation, by the First Secretary of Embassy in China (Ludden)

[Nanking,] October 17, 1947.

Dr. Lo Lung-chi called on me this morning and I informed him that on October 15 the Ambassador in conversation with the Prime Minister had mentioned the desire of the League to be given an opportunity to answer Government charges that they were a tail of the Chinese Communist Party. I said that the Prime Minister had mentioned to the Ambassador that he had received the League’s recent letter to him and the Ambassador had suggested on a purely informal basis that the League’s proposal be given favorable consideration.

Dr. Lo expressed his gratitude for this step on the part of the Ambassador and requested that I convey to the Ambassador the appreciation of the League.

Dr. Lo then raised the subject of American aid to China and what had been the recommendations made by General Wedemeyer. I said that I had no information with regard to the Wedemeyer report or any recommendations contained therein. Dr. Lo went on to say that he was convinced personally that aid to the Government would be recommended by General Wedemeyer and that such aid will be forthcoming although he did not know in what quantity. In this connection he expressed the hope that any substantial American aid would be contingent upon substantial reform in the present Government. Dr. Lo averred that if sufficient American aid were forthcoming to eliminate the Communists in China, it would be of no advantage to the United States in the long run if in the course of eliminating the Communists all other political groups in China were likewise eliminated by the Government. He said that in the long run such a course would redound to the disadvantage of the United States by turning the majority of Chinese against the United States even though temporary stability could possibly be achieved in China by totalitarian methods.

Dr. Lo sought my advice as to what the attitude of the League should be in the face of current repressive acts by the Government. He said that neither he nor other leaders of the League feared arrest or imprisonment. He said that this might very well come and come shortly, but they were more concerned that the actions of the Government would tend more and more to drive the League, League sympathizers, and even non-partisans toward the Chinese Communists. He went on to say that he and other leaders of the League felt that no program of American aid to China could succeed merely on the basis of being anti-Communist; that in order to be successful it would have to take into consideration social and economic problems not necessarily related to the current civil war; that if these problems were ignored a purely military approach to the Chinese problems was doomed to failure. He went on to say that it was therefore in the long term interest of the United States to see that an essentially loyal political opposition in China was not arbitrarily suppressed merely because the Government accused it of being pro-Communist without being called upon to prove its case publicly.