"Manchuria Red Flag": the mouthpiece and lighthouse of the toiling masses in northeast China

Source: China Social Science Network

With the relocation of the organs of the Manchurian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China from Shenyang to Harbin as the boundary, "Manchuria Red Flag" can be divided into the Shenyang period from September to October 1930 and the Harbin period from January to September 1932, with at least 3 issues each, which is a representative red document in the northeast region during the period of the new democratic revolution.

One report to two places: from Shenyang to Harbin

In August 1930, the highest local party organization in the northeast of the Communist Party of China was changed from the Manchuria Provincial Committee to the Manchuria Provincial General Action Committee (hereinafter referred to as the "General Action Committee"). On September 15, Chen Tanqiu, secretary of the General Bank Committee, instructed zhao Yimin, the head of the Propaganda Department, to publish the first issue of the Manchuria Red Flag, the organ newspaper of the General Bank of China, which was founded and edited by Zhao Yimin, director of the Propaganda Department, to be published in Shenyang, where the organ is located (the two have been preparing to run the newspaper in August). The issue is 16 openings, the first page is disguised as "national must read", "Shanghai Dadong Bookstore printing"; the real cover is printed with the flag flying city tower, "this quotation" is "a corner of the ocean per month, half a year of the ocean five corners of the year, a foreign port plus a corner of postage per month". The contents are "Issuing Remarks", editorials "Supporting the Declaration of the Communist Party of China on the Current Situation -- Deepening This Declaration among the Broad Masses", "Lamentations of the Abolitionists", "Editor's Words", and "Notice for Solicitation of Papers of this Newspaper" by "Su Hua".

On October 10, the third issue was published, the first page was disguised as "Republic of China Post Special Registered Volume Considered Newsprint Industry and Commerce Weekly"; the real cover was printed with "RED FLAG", five-pointed star, hammer, sickle, gun, rifle, marked "Double Ten Section Special Issue Number", and "This Quotation". The contents are the editorial "Double Ten Festivals and the Movement for Supporting Soviet Power", "Commemorating the Double Tenth Festival and the War to Eliminate the Warlords" by "Ke Peng", "Commemorating the Double Tenth Festival and establishing Soviet power" by "Qiu", "Double Ten Festivals and the National Assembly" by "Double Ten Festivals", and "Purging!" "A cartoon with the words.

In November 1930, the General Bank Committee was changed to the Provincial Party Committee. In February 1931, the Manchurian Provincial Party Committee was reorganized, with Zhang Yinglong as secretary and Zhao Yimin as director of the Propaganda Department. On February 24, the Manchurian Red Flag was "tentatively published in three days (now in ten issues)". On March 21, the 15th issue of "Manchuria Red Flag" was published, which was in the style of a newspaper, with the masthead printed "one cent per copy sold to foreign countries", "organ newspaper of the Manchurian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China", and "second edition". The contents are "Declaration of the Manchurian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China against the National Assembly", "Declaration of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions against the Factory Law and against the Kuomintang Yellow Trade Unions Destroying the Workers' Own Trade Unions - Struggle for the Organization of the Working Class's Own Trade Unions" issued by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions on February 17, 1931, the cartoon "The Dead and Chiang Kai-shek - In Front of the New Grave", the short commentary "Commemoration of march 18", and 11 other reports.

After the September 18 Incident, due to the arrest of Zhao Yimin, the publication of "Manchuria Red Flag" was suspended. In November, the Manchurian Provincial Party Committee was destroyed. In December, the provincial party committee was rebuilt, with Luo Dengxian as secretary and He Chengxiang as the head of the propaganda department, and the provincial party committee was later moved to Harbin.

On January 30, 1932, the first issue of "Manchuria Red Flag", which was re-published in Harbin, was published, edited by He Chengxiang, and the second and third issues were published on February 14 and March 14, respectively. From May to June, "Nie from the Central Committee was responsible for propaganda and editor of the party newspaper", that is, Nie Shuxian (Shang Yu) was appointed director of the propaganda department of the provincial party committee and responsible for the work of the party newspaper; in July, He Chengxiang was appointed director of the propaganda department, and the Manchuria Red Flag was republished as the Northeast Red Flag until September.

The first issue is 8 open 2 editions, chromatic mimeograph, the appendix is 32 open 2 pages, published a commentary on "The Significance of the Twenty-sixth Day Incident in Harbin". The second issue of the appendix also opened 2 pages for 32, publishing a commentary on "The Experience and Lessons of the Failure of the Anti-Japanese Citizens' Assembly on February 8". The third issue is 8 open 2 editions, chromatic mimeograph, the masthead print "two dailys" and "price ocean two points". The first edition contains an "editorial" entitled "On the Shanghai Incident", the source of which is the "Letter to The Party Departments in Various Localities for the Shanghai Incident" of the CPC Central Committee on February 15, and there are six other reports; the second edition publishes the "Joint Declaration of the Secretariat of the Red Workers' International of the Western European Bureau of the Communist International" and other reports.

Take on the mission of mouthpiece and lighthouse

On September 13, 1930, the Manchurian Red Flag Society published a "Speech", proposing the mission of becoming the mouthpiece and lighthouse of the toiling masses in Manchuria.

After introducing the background of the birth of "the rapid development of the struggle between the workers and peasants, the fierce expansion of the Soviets and the Red Army", the "Issued Speech" said that "its mission is very important", that is, "in the blockade of all revolutionary news by the enemy, in the deception of the reactionary newspapers throughout the country, it not only introduces the revolutionary struggles of all parts of the country and the international to the toiling masses of Manchuria, it is not only the mouthpiece of the toiling masses of Manchuria, but also the beacon of the toiling masses of Manchuria." He went on to propose that "it is a weapon of class struggle," echoing the assertion in the hongqi ribao, the organ of the Communist Party of China, which was founded in Shanghai on August 15, that "in the present class society, newspapers are a tool of class struggle." Final appeal: "Workers, peasants, and soldiers throughout Manchuria and all the toiling masses!" Unite! Under the red light of the 'Manchurian Red Flag', seize our land, bread, freedom and power!! ”

In the process of giving play to its guiding and mass nature and realizing the mission of running a newspaper, the "Manchuria Red Flag" leads the direction and is easy to understand, not only publicizing the policies and principles of the CPC Central Committee and the northeast party organizations, expanding the party's influence among the masses, but also publishing news of revolutionary struggles in various localities and guiding the development of mass movements. The "Double Tenth Festival and the National Assembly", contained in the third issue of the Shenyang period, discusses the incompleteness of the Xinhai Revolution and discusses the question of the leadership of the Chinese democratic revolution: "Only under the leadership of the proletariat can the Chinese revolution be completed, and only the Soviet Conference of workers, peasants, soldiers, and poor people can liberate the broad masses of toiling masses in China. ”

Appealing commentary and clearly articulated text of the telegram

The articles published in "Manchuria Red Flag" mainly deal with the news of the revolutionary struggle between workers, peasants, and soldiers everywhere, the living conditions of the toiling masses of workers, peasants, and soldiers, short comments, interesting and stimulating poems, songs, or short stories, and political cartoons. Among them, comments with important themes and strong appeal and eye-catching and clearly intentioned telecommunications occupy a large part.

One is the comments. On August 14, 1930, the Manifesto of the Communist Party of China on the Present Situation (hereinafter referred to as the "Declaration") was published; the "Declaration" was published in the first issue of the "Red Flag Daily" published on August 15; on September 15, the "Manifesto" in the first issue of the "Manchuria Red Flag" reprinted the "Declaration", accompanied by a commentary entitled "Support for the Declaration of the Communist Party of China on the Current Situation -- Penetrating This Declaration into the Broad Masses", pointing out, "This Leninist Bolshevik document, without doubt, is bound to be in the present whole Chinese revolutionary struggle. The occurrence of a great leading role will occupy a very important position in the future history of the Chinese revolution." The editors deliberately stated that "this political declaration is very rich and very important", and once again stressed the importance of the Declaration.

The second is reporting. The 11 reports contained in the 15th issue of the Shenyang period were 12 telegrams, including the "Hankou News" and "Nanjing News," which expressed the victory of the Red Army, and "The Great Victory of the Red Army in Northern Hubei -- Division Commander Yue Weijun Was Captured, And Almost All Officers and Men Surrendered Their Weapons," as well as the "Tianjin News," which attacked the National Government in Nanjing, "Revolutionary Diplomacy Was As It Was—The Kuomintang Dog-Shaped Appearance in the Sino-Japanese Railway Negotiations," "Shanghai News," "The Nanjing Government Paid More Than 240 Million Yuan in Killing Expenses Last Year," and "Harbin News," which reflected the results of the struggle, and "Guxiangtun Oil House Workers' League Strike." Ask for an increase in wages, and the victory is nine times out of ten! "Longjing Village News," "Gradually Expanding the Guerrilla War among Workers and Peasants in Yanbian -- Confiscating Grain from Landlords and Distributing Land to Toiling Workers and Peasants In Ordinary Ways," "Jilin News," "Selecting Representatives of a Soldiers' Committee In a Brigade Stationed in Kyrgyzstan to Attend the Soviet Congress," and "Benbu News, "Shenyang Rickshaw Pullmen Added More Than 3,000 More Than Three Thousand -- Natural Results of Kuomintang Exploitation," "Jinxian News," "The Kuomintang Really Exploits —Artillerymen Still Have to Earn Money by Doing Work for Officers."

The six reports contained in the third issue of the Harbin period were from the telegrams of Harbin, Changchun, and Shenyang, as well as the news "according to Japanese newspapers", which were swift and verbal images, showing the call of the masses to rebel against the "Manchurian lackey government" when the volunteers fought heroically.

As a major initiative of the Communist Party of China in organizing the press and periodicals, the Manchuria Red Flag was published in two places in secret and mailed in letters; as a representative red document in northeast China during the period of the new democratic revolution, it became the mouthpiece and beacon of the toiling masses in Manchuria before and after the September 18 Incident. It was the only organ newspaper run by the highest local party organization in the northeast of the CPC at the same time, and embodied the policies and guidelines of the agrarian revolution and the national revolution organized by the northeast party organization. On September 18, 1932, in order to commemorate the first anniversary of the September 18 Incident, the first issue of the "External Mass Publication" "Northeast Red Flag" was published by it, which became another red flag in the anti-Japanese national revolutionary movement in Northeast China.

Author: Tian Lei

(This paper is a phased result of the National Social Science Foundation Youth Project "Research on the History of Revolutionary Culture Communication in Northeast China (1905-1949)" (16CXW004))

(Author Affilications:School of Journalism and Communication, Heilongjiang University)