My Fellow Countrymen:
The great chaos on the international scene and the unprecedented calamity on the Chinese mainland, both of which began with the seizure of power by Mao Tse-tung and his gang twelve years ago, have reached the most extreme proportions today. We can no longer sit back and watch our mainland compatriots being tortured and starved by the Chinese Communists indefinitely. Nor can we remain forever indifferent to the impending disaster facing mankind without doing something about it. In the incoming year, all of us, civilians and military alike, should be more united than ever, re-affirm our determination to recover the mainland and deliver our people from tyranny. Our common goal is to save the world from a greater tragedy and to safeguard freedom for all human beings.
On this day, which marks the beginning of the fifty-first year of our Republic, and also the anniversary of Dr. Sun Yat-sen's inauguration as President of the Provisional Government in Nanking in 1912, we should not only recall the difficulties encountered by the father of our Republic and our martyrs in establishing the Republic, but should also re-dedicate ourselves to the continuation of the same revolutionary spirit so as to assure our Republic of a bright future. Dr. Sun told us: "The National Revolution is so called, because its success depends on the concern and work of the whole nation". I earnestly hope all our compatriots will rally around the Government and work in unison to discharge this sacred responsibility.
In propounding the Three Principles of the People and devoting himself to the cause of China's National Revolution, Dr. Sun Yat-sen had in mind not only freedom and equality for China in the comity of nations, but also a lasting peace for the entire mankind. The history of the Republic of China in the past half a century is a record of the Chinese people's struggle to fulfill this dual task. During the quarter of a century from 1912 to 1936, our efforts were aimed at safeguarding our republican form of government, drawing up a blueprint of national unification, and laying the foundation for a democratic and constitutional rule. Since 1937, it has been our purpose to strive for national independence and freedom from direct and indirect aggression by both old and new colonial isms, as well as to maintain peace in Asia and other parts of the world.
Looking back over the past fifty years, we are gratified that domestically we have succeeded in overthrowing monarchical despotism, eliminating warlords, and completing the groundwork for democratic constitutionalism; and externally, we have succeeded in defeating imperialistic aggression, abrogating the unequal treaties which had been imposed upon us in the past century; and, in so doing, heralding the tide of nationalism in Asia, and constituting a pillar of strength in the Far East in the defense of world peace and international justice. The destiny of our nation has not only become inseparably interwoven with the future of Asia and that of the world, but has also formed an important link between world security and peril and between human happiness and suffering.
Upon the conclusion of World War II, I uttered two warnings to the world:
1. The anti-aggression Allies should work together to remove the causes of war as soon as the present war comes to an end. If not, then World War III will follow World War II just as World War II has followed World War I.
2. If China is not independent and free, all Asian nations will fall behind the Iron Curtain and there can be no solid foundation on which to build world peace. An independent and strong China is a stabilizing factor in Asia, and only when the Asian nations are free and independent can there be a lasting peace for the world.
Unfortunately the correctness of my warnings has been confirmed by subsequent events. During the 16 years since the end of World War II, international Communism has been waging a relentless war of aggression on an everexpanding scale. The United Nations has failed in its primary mission of checking aggression and preserving peace. The devilish Communist tactics of subverting and paralyzing a country from within has plunged the world body in endless crises.
Today the world situation has greatly worsened as a result of the two-ocean offensive of the Russian and the Chinese Communists. Meanwhile they are taking full advantage of neutralism to prosecute their "united front" schemes. Their tentacles of subversion and paralysis have actually reached not only Southeast Asia, the Indian Ocean and Africa in the eastern hemisphere, but Central and South Americas in the Western hemisphere as well. The traditionally peace-loving Chinese people on the mainland have been forced into aggressive wars by the international Communists to the jeopardy of peace and stability in Asia and other parts of the world.
These historical facts have proved that the fall of the Chinese mainland to the Communists is the major cause of all crises in Asia as well as in other parts of the world and that the Chinese Communists are even more aggressive than the Russian Imperialists. To fight Communism has, therefore, become the common duty of all freedom-loving and anti-aggression nations in the world. As the Republic of China has full territorial sovereignty over the Chinese mainland, it has the right, just as its government has the responsibility, to recover the mainland and to save the lives and safeguard the freedom of the more than 500,000,000 people there. Furthermore, this is also the most fundamental way to eliminate the root of another world war.
My Fellow-Countrymen: The Revolution of 1911 succeeded in a space of only three months. But victory would not have come so soon without the inspiration of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's Three Principles of the People, the bloodshed and sacrifices of our revolutionary martyrs, and the grim and persistent struggle in the preceding seventeen years on the part of members of the Hsing Chung Hui (Society for Rejuvenation) and the Tung Meng Hui (United League), both predecessors of the Kuomintang. That indomitable spirit won for the Wuchang Uprising immediate and favorable response from the various provinces for the establishment of our Republic. When Dr. Sun was inaugurated as President of the Provisional Government, he solemnly said: "During the past decade or so, our revolutionary comrades have overcome all obstacles with their spiritual strength. In the future, we may be faced with greater difficulties. But so long as we maintain this revolutionary spirit, nothing can deter us. We must have the Republic solidly founded on this continent before we can become blameless in the eyes of our people." In these words we can find peerless spiritual stimulation for our current task of counter-offensive and national recovery.
(1) We should know that in fighting Communism spiritual strength counts more than military strength. In our counter-offensive, political measures must precede military action. We have in the rear of the enemy an enormous reserve force. The Chinese mainland is the principal battlefield for combined political and military operations against the enemy.
(2) Our counter-offensive for national recovery is aimed at removing the danger of a thermo-nuclear war by means of a conventional war. We seek to prevent the outbreak of a world war by a domestic localized war. For victory in our anti-Communist struggle, we do not pin our hopes on any global war. On the contrary, we are fighting to deter the aggression of the Communist bloc, thereby eliminating the cause of another world war.
My Fellow Countrymen: Our task in the China theater of war is a great one. Similarly, our task to uphold world peace is a stupendous one. Our Government, to be able to fulfill its own responsibility of recovering the mainland and delivering the people there from tyranny, henceforth must work harder to rejuvenate the national spirit and effect total mobilization in anticipation of the oncoming decisive struggle in our National Revolution. We should all realize that to achieve national recovery and to rebuild our country, we need the strength that can only come from unity of purpose and solidarity. We should also know that the battlefield is everywhere and we must be ready to fight at any time. Moreover, we should thoroughly understand that a real war is fought before hostilities actually begin, and that the final victory is determined by preparations made well in advance.
This winter our compatriots on the mainland are dying from cold and starvation in increasing numbers; their eyes overflowing with tears are looking toward us, eagerly hoping and expecting us to save their lives and secure their freedom. Just as one would combat a natural calamity like fighting a fire, we must go to the rescue of our compatriots like aiding our own kith and kin. In other words, we must act in unison and be ready to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to save the people on the Chinese mainland from starvation and hell-like subsistence.
Finally, to our compatriots on the mainland I want to say: You have suffered under Communist tyranny for twelve long years. You have reached the end of your endurance. You need not endure or wait any longer. It is time for you to avenge the wrong the Communists have done to your family and to your nation. It is time for you to demand of the Communists: "Return to us our food", "Return to us our land", "Return to us our family", and "Return to us our liberty". The time for collective action is here. Our armed forces have made adequate preparations for the counter-offensive, and, therefore, are capable of moving into action at any time. Have no fear of being alone in rising against the Communists. Have no fear of lack or shortage of supplies or help. Both will be forthcoming once you take action. Those around you who are patriots and have stalwart hearts will join hands with you. In addition to our armed forces that are prepared to aid you from the outside at any moment, even the Communist soldiers and cadres, now under ruthless control, will also be inspired by your resistance to support you in the fight to throw off the strangling yoke around your neck.
My Fellow Countrymen: This is a time of the severest trial for our nation, but also a golden opportunity for the success of our National Revolution. The existing circumstances are most favorable to our cause. Never before has our revolutionary strength been so concentrated, our people's hatred for the Communists so deep, and their longing for deliverance from Communist oppression so desperate. Furthermore, our enemy, being insane and suicide-bent, is quickly moving toward a total collapse. Like two bright stars in the sky, Dr. Sun's Three Principles of the People and the success of the Revolution of 1911 are guiding us. We have absolute faith in the final triumph of the Three Principles of the People over Communism. We must defeat Communist treachery with our traditional virtues, replace the "people's communes" with family ethics, substitute a free way of life for slave labor, and, with the joint efforts of all our compatriots, overthrow the wicked puppet regime. We are more convinced than ever that all this can be done and must be done.
Now is the time for us to press on in our all-out fight against Communism. Either subjectively or objectively, we can no longer vacillate or hesitate to perform our duty to deliver our people, our nation, and the whole world from catastrophe. The situations both at home and abroad are such that we can no longer passively wait and see if something would happen. Let all our compatriots, civilians and military alike, abide by Dr. Sun Yat-sen's teachings, follow in the footsteps of our revolutionary martyrs who laid down their lives for our Republic, and resolutely march together toward our national goal of recovering the mainland by a determined counter-offensive.
Supplementary Statement On Chinese Representation*
The delegate of the Soviet Union and his comrades in the Soviet Bloc have taken a very prominent part in this debate, as is to be expected. They have repeated each other. They, one and all, have used gutter language to play gutter politics in the United Nations. They are skillful, up to a certain point, in weaving a colorful fabric out of falsehoods. They do not deserve any reply except in two points which unless corrected, may poison the entire international atmosphere. The delegate of the Soviet Union in his speech on December 1 stated "the United States has seized the Chinese island of Taiwan, occupied it, and turned it into a springboard for aggression against the People's Republic of China."
Mr. President, the United States has not seized Taiwan. The United States has not occupied Taiwan. The United States has not turned Taiwan into a springboard for aggression against anybody.
My government and the government of the United States have signed a treaty of mutual defense. Its terms have been published and are public property. The treaty is similar in nature to several such treaties concluded between the United States and her allies elsewhere. The United States has not occupied Taiwan any more than she has occupied Great Britain of any country in western Europe. The treaty is entirely defensive in purpose. Under this treaty, my government has retained full sovereignty. The United States has not, either by virtue of this treaty or in the name of anything else, tried to infringe upon the sovereignty of my country.
The relations between my country and the United States have been very friendly. The Soviet accusation of United States imperialism in China is propaganda made of falsehood throughout, whether we consider the recent period or the historical past. The Chinese people know this. No matter how hard the Chinese Communists keep up their "hate America" campaign, and no matter how often the Soviet delegate and his comrades repeat that accusation in the United Nations, the Chinese people, in their heart of hearts, know that the United States is their true friend.
The second point in the Soviet propaganda campaign here which I wish to take up is the idea of the exploitation of Taiwan by the so-called American monopolies.
Let me quote the words of the Soviet delegate:
"Finally, the United States holds on persistently to the Chiang Kai-shek clique because American monopolies have taken into their hands the economy of Taiwan, with its help, and extract considerable profits from it. It is a fact that the American company, Westinghouse Electric, controls the Taiwan electric power system; that the American firm, National Fertilizer Association, controls the production of chemical fertilizers: that the Gulf Oil Corporation of the United States controls the oil-bearing area of Miaosu; that the American firm, Reynolds Metal, is in control of the aluminum industry, while other American companies have seized the rest of the Taiwan economy."
Mr. Zorin has once more picked up points in the "hate America" campaign of his comrades on the mainland of China. Everyone of these points is a falsehood. Let me take them up one by one.
Point Number One. The Soviet delegate told you that Westinghouse Electric controls the Taiwan electric power system. This is false. What we have is the Taiwan Power Corporation, a government enterprise, with assets equivalent to 100 million U.S. dollars. That corporation has, from time to time, during the last twelve years, bought power equipment from Westinghouse. The purchases have been made on a deferred payment basis. The total of such credits granted by Westinghouse to the Taiwan Power Corporation is a million dollars. Much of this has already been paid. Westinghouse owns and controls nothing on the island of Taiwan. We have found the relationship between the Taiwan Power Corporation and Westinghouse to be very fruitful, and, so far as we are concerned, we are ready to continue to deal with Westinghouse.
The second point is that the American firm, National Fertilizer Association, controls the production of chemical fertilizers in Taiwan. This again is a lie. Chemical fertilizers are a nationalized industry in my country. Our annual production is about 400,000 tons, not a single ton of this production is made by any American company or owned by American monopolist capital. It is entirely Chinese. Negotiations are afoot between the Chinese Petroleum Corporation on the one hand and the Socony Mobil Oil Company and the Allied Chemical Corporation of the United States on the other hand to form a partnership for the manufacture of 100,000 tons a year of urea and 45,000 tons a year of ammonia. The plan contemplates the use of the newly-discovered natural gas in Taiwan. The agreement has not yet been finalized but this is expected to come about very soon. When established, the enterprise will be a tripartite affair, with the Chinese Petroleum Corporation, the Socony Mobil Oil Company and the Allied Chemical Corporation as the three partners. The concern will contribute one-fifth of the total chemical fertilizers manufactured on the island. This is certainly far from controlling the production of chemical fertilizers.
The third point of the Soviet delegate's enumeration is that the Gulf Oil Corporation of the United States controls the oil-bearing area of Miaosu. Mr. President, unfortunately we have not discovered any oil-bearing area in Miaosu, wherever that may be. For all practical purposes, oil does not exist on the island. The Gulf Oil Company cannot control something in Taiwan which does not exist.
The fourth point of the Soviet enumeration is that Reynolds Metal is in control of the aluminum industry. Sir, the aluminum industry in Taiwan is a nationalized industry. It has nothing to do with Reynolds Metal. Let me make it clear and absolute: Reynolds Metal has nothing whatever to do with Taiwan.
The last point of the Soviet enumeration is that other American companies have seized the rest of Taiwan economy. I need only say one thing on this point. This is a lie. While discussing this point, Mr. President, I would like, with your permission, to insert a commercial. My government welcomes foreign investors in Taiwan whether they come as holders of stocks of Chinese companies, or as partners in joint enterprises, or as lenders of capital for new enterprises. Insofar as foreign capitalists conform to Chinese law, they are welcome.
What has really mattered in the economic progress of my country up to the present is not American monopoly capital but American economic aid. These Soviet accusations of United States occupation of Taiwan and United States monopolist capital exploitation of Taiwan have behind them two insinuations: One is an attempt to lead the world to believe that my government is a willing tool and victim of American imperialism and colonialism. Mr. President, my government is the first of all Asian and African countries to fight against imperialism and colonialism. Dr. Sun Yat-sen, who is the father of the Chinese Republic and the nationalist movement in China, made it his life work to emancipate China from Western colonialism and imperialism.
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* The statement was delivered by Dr. Tingfu F. Tsiang on December 14, 1961 in an form of an exercise of his "right of reply" at the wind-up of the General Assembly's plenary debate.