History of the Nationalist and Communist Parties

Our committee will take place during the first Political Consultative Assembly of January 1946. The Chinese Nationalist party, first founded in 1912 in order to oppose the Chinese Monarchy, came to power in 1928. Sun Yat Sen, the original leader, created the goals of the Chinese Nationalist party: improve the livelihood and morale of the citizens, create a democracy, and uphold nationalism, specifically the idea that China should be equal to all other countries. While the nationalists were still gaining control of China in 1924, they received help from the Soviets and Chinese Communists. Chiang Kai Shek became the leader of the nationalist party in 1925, with goals of creating a more central government. By taking away the autonomy that warlords of different Chinese Regions held, Shek was able to take control of China, creating a government that almost resembled a dictatorship. In 1931, with both the Chinese Communists and Chinese Nationalists competing for power, the Japanese were able to invade China when it was at a weak point. The nationalists were spending all their resources and energy on fighting the Chinese Communists that they were greatly weakened by the Japanese invasion.

On July 23, 1921, The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was founded. The party’s leaders, a small group of Revolutionaries who gathered in secret, founded the CCP on the principles of Marxism-Leninism, the official ideology of the Communist party of the Soviet Union. Marxism-Leninism centered around three main principles: dialectical materialism, Marxian economic theory, and the socio-political theory of scientific communism. The three principles stemmed from Karl Marx’s communism, a political system where all property is publicly owned, and each person is paid for their work based on their own abilities and needs. The CCP was particularly dedicated to revolution, class-equity, and the end of exploitation, values that aligned with those of the Chinese citizens. Mao Zedong, the founding father of the ‘People’s Republic of China,’ led the CCP in the Chinese Civil War.

1941 - 1945: Tensions Rise + War Breaks Out

The Sino-Japanese war weakened the Nationalist party, with many of its members dying, and its military resources and weapons being almost entirely depleted. Throughout the war, Nationalists continued to spread anticommunist messages to the citizens, causing more tension between the Nationalists and communists. Additionally, both parties were trying to regain control of the territories that the Japanese had seized. In 1941, the Nationalist government continued to fight against the Communists’ attempts to steal the Nationalist territory. In 1944, during the government’s attempts to retain power of the Communists, the citizens of nationalist China became unsatisfied with the government, because of inflation and growing poverty rates. War broke out soon after, with struggles to gain territory being the first stage of the war.

By the time Japan surrendered in 1945, nationalists were losing control of China. Millions had died in war, and millions of others had died from starvation or disease. Additionally, the United Front withdrew their allyship from the party once Japan lost. Communists and Nationalists began competing for vital resources and population centers in Northern China, but Nationalists were able to take over key cities and most railway lines in East and Northern China, with the help of the U.S.. Still, Chinese Communists occupied most of the hinterland in Northern China, and the city Manchuria. During the early stages of war, the corruption of the Chinese Nationalist Party gave Communists the upper hand.

1946 Negotiations

During negotiations between the Chinese Communist Party and the Kuomintang (Nationalists) in 1945, the two parties agreed to open multi party talks on political reforms through a Political Consultative Conference, which was included in the Double Tenth Agreement. The agreement was implemented by the National Government of the Republic of China, who organized the first Political Consultative Assembly from January 10–31, 1946. Representatives of the Kuomintang, CCP, Chinese Youth Party, and China Democratic League, as well as independent delegates, attended the conference in Chongqing. CCP chairpersons of the Political Consultative Assembly (PCA) included Zhang Qingli, Liu Qibao, Lu Zhangong, Wang Zhengwei, Ma Biao, Xia Baolong, Yang Chuantang, Lin Bin, Wang Yongqing, Bagatur, and He Lifeng.

CCP Bloc

Zhang Qingli

He Yingqin

Lu Zhangong

Sun Li-Jen

Ma Biao

Xia Baolong

Yang Chuantang

Lin Bin

Wang Yongqing

Bagatur

He Lifeng

Nationalist Bloc

Li Zongren

He Yingqin

Chiang Kai Shek

Wang Zhengwei

Chang Hsueh-liang

Yan Xishan

Feng Yuxiang

Bai Chongxi

Patrick J. Hurley