Northern China Famine of 1920s to 1930s - Essay Example

Northern china famine of 1920s to 1930s Introduction The history of the republic of china cannot be completely discussedwithout mentioning the famines that have ravaged the different provinces in the country. One of these famines was the northern china famine of the 1920s that led to the deaths of more than two million northern Chinese citizens in the country. Famine is considered any catastrophic food crisis that leads to the death of a large portion of a country’s population. Several theories have been advanced to explain who bears the greatest responsibility on the advancement of the 1929 famine in the northern section of the republic of china (Edgerton-Tarpley, 2013). With the current international corporation and the presence of aids organization, such a situation will lead to the intervention of international entities like the United Nations. However, the northern china crisis of 1929 occurred at a time when countries in the world were concerned with independent development and armament to be concerned with international issues (Fuller, 2011). Were the famines in the northern parts of china between the 1920s and 30s because of natural causes or were they man-made? This question has remained elusive due to the inability different state organs and bodies to transparently provide information regarding the beginning and progression of the famine. In this paper, the man made contribution towards the famine will be discussed and the nature of which led to the escalation of the situation described aptly (Yao-huang, 2012). Historical context of the northern china famine Mainland china has for a long term been known for the emergence of disasters and catastrophes including famines, earthquakes and landslides which have led to the loss of lives in the country. One of the challenges facing the northern part of china is high uncertainty in the climate and the inadequacy of natural resources like water and fertile land. As a result, agricultural development in this region has been significantly hampered and this has lowered the annual harvests in the country. Pre-modern china also has a precarious agricultural equilibrium, which contributed to the susceptibility of the region to famine and other natural disasters (Dikötter, 2013). Based on the report of the peking united international famine relief committee, these provinces each has a population of more than a single European country, placing their population estimate at 20-25 million people. Based on this estimate, the total number of Chinese northern territory occupants who were affected by the famine was more than 100 million (Zhao & Reimondos, 2012). The country was under the leadership of warlords who adopted the divide and rule tactics, which affected the capability of the country to respond to the famine. Due to the presence of the warlords, the government in place was characterized by periods of stability and instability as the ruling Chinese national party made attempts to reorganize the country and eliminate the threats to its stability (Fuller, 2013). Causes of the 1920s famine in the northern parts of china To determine whether the government and the people or the natural disasters in the country were directly responsible for the advancement of the famine in china, a description of causes of the famine is essential. During the time in the history of the republic of china, several disasters had occurred that affected the stability and emergency response of the country (Bernstein, 2013). Before the beginning of the famine, the country was subjected to a three-year drought that affected the ability of the region to practice productive agricultural activity. The arable lands, which could have been used for the production of food crops, were used for the farming of lucrative opium, further affecting the ability of the region to cushion itself against the pangs of famine. The causes to the northern china famine of 1920s can be attributed to social, economic and political pressures that faced the region together with land mismanagement (Pence, 2012). Lack of agricultural planning At a time when the country was suffering from lack of food, the government of the northern parts of china did not help in organising constructive agricultural planning process. The arable land in the region was used for farming of opium, a medicinal crop which deprived food crop farmers of the most fertile places in the country. This lowered the agricultural output in the region, complemented by the actions of the judges. The people neglected food production and focused mainly on growing opium. All the attention was given to the growing of opium as the main crop in the northern China. People also were involved in the trade of opium, throughout the period between 1900 and 1940, opium sent to China, and, on a far lesser scale to Southeast Asian consumers, was one of India’s most valued exports. Most of the opium produced in this company was exported to Northern China. In addition, China licensed the growing and usage of opium which led to abandonment of food production. In the earlier years, only the licensed cultivators were allowed to grow poppy; unlicensed crop growing was a criminal offense and offenders faced the full force of the law. However, after its legalization, many people started growing opium as it was well and more rewarding than growing food crops (Pence, 2012). In china, the failure to provide economic options to opium production before doing away with poppy crops is having an annihilating impact on the poverty-stricken rural people who rely on the illegal opium economy for their livelihood. Opium farming is done in the Northern China is mostly carried out by highland tribes who mainly depend on rice grown on hillsides during the periods of slash-and-burn and rain-fed agriculture. The main cash crop for the Northern China People has long been, and also is, opium, the production of which appears to be their only reliable means of having food security (Berg, 2011). The opium production in North China went hand-in-hand with the foreign conquest and revolution. China was then torn apart by the centrifugal forces which were introduced by the effects of British looting and introduction of opium growing. In the years 1920 to 1935, China divided by the wars by the Taiping and Triad gangs. Many deaths occurred due to the revolts are estimated to reach to several tens of millions. This reduced the number of people who could work on the agricultural fields hence food production reduced. Due to usage of opium and reduction in food production led to severe famine in the Northern China. Experts normally take famine as majorly a man-made catastrophe, as opposed to natural disasters like hurricanes or tornadoes, despite the fact that the effects of the natural disasters are worsened by short-sighted construction and energy products (Xinyu, 2010). The role played by Chiang Kai Shek in the famine During the time of the famine, china was under the leadership of Chiang Kai Shek who worked towards the magnification and the unification of a country that was under the control of war loads. His land policies and focus on the elimination of the warlords affect the agricultural growth and activities of the region, which increased the progress of the famine and regenerated china. Ownership of property according to Mao’s ideologies ensured that peace prevailed amongst members of the society. This reduced the gap between our poor and rich and a society with a feeling of belonging breeds peace and an atmosphere that encourages development. That is the spirit that you should also adopt in your day-to-day life as you approach issues related to wealth and finance (Zarrow, 2005). His life was defined by his battle against the Communists, which took a variety of forms over the years. In many respect there was not much that separated him from other warlords except they managed to hold on to some kind of power and stay relevant for a long time (Christensen, 2005). Many civil wars took place in many parts of the Republic for a whole decade, between 1917 and 1927, which the northern part of china being majorly affected. The civil wars and disturbances caused severe famine and strain on food resources of the northern population. The government of Chiang Kai-shek through the ministry of finance sold more than $10 million in bonds and the money was then distributed as relief (Pence, 2012). In addition, the Chiang government did away with taxes on foodstuffs directed to the famine stricken areas in China. This was meant to make sure that the cost of foodstuffs, which was increased, was brought down to help in buying more food items. The government also provided free transportation on railway for foodstuffs shipped by the relief agencies (Zarrow, 2005). Despite all these, the normal Chinese suffered greatly under Chiang leadership due to poor policies and rules. Children were forced to work in factories for more than 12 hours and sleep on the machines they were working on. On the other hand, women were sold off as concubines and slaves to foreign countries so there were no one to work in the agricultural fields. The magistrates loaned money to farmers at extremely high interest rates so that they could get enough money to buy expensive fertilizer. They then reduced the price of the crops at harvest time and seized the land when the peasants were no able to pay back the loans. Chiang Kai-sheks army warehouses overflowed with grain, people in the Northern part of China were starved to death, and eating bark and leaves to survive (Rasmussen, 2010). In other instances, the secret police and the military raided homes of peasant farmers and other inhabitants of the country side and stole their crop reserves. Other homes were razed to the ground especially after some farmers refused to the support the collectivism policy. The capture and deportation of the farmers also affected the countryside as strong and able farmers were sent to the concentration camps in Serbia. As a result, agricultural production and farming was affected and the food crop production decline significantly in the countryside (Gray, 2003). The prohibition of farm ownership in the region by the Chinese communist party affected agricultural production in the region as the government controlled all arable and productive lands. This created a state of instability, as the pressure on the people by the government could not allow them to till their farms and contribute towards improving the agricultural basket of the country. Though the government insisted that the advancement in famine in the country was because of natural causes, external researchers attributed the government policies to inadequate food production in the country. According to a Chinese historian, the interior ministry in the country neglected the public health concerns, famine relief and the functions of local administration, which contributed to the increase in the number of casualties (Yurong, 2000). As the three-year drought was ravaging the northern parts of China, the politicians and the warlords increased their appetite for money and this pushed the country to the edge of financial collapse. To finance their activities, the warlords invaded the public coffers and fleeced the public of the reserve that could have been used in the famine planning process in the country. The country’s ability to famine the famine and remain stable was significantly affected following the devastations of the wars caused by the warlords. To cushion the Wan County from further devastations of the famine, the central Zhili judge ordered for the collection of grains into the county granary (Gray, 2003). The size of the contribution of each individual was influenced by the size of his or her farms and therefore their resultant output. Though seen as a noble cause of building a reserve to cushion the country from further devastation of the famine, this reserve was taken over by the region’s leadership, leaving the poor to the mercies of the famine and drought. To survive the pangs of hunger and lack of water, the people were forced to eat anything they could lay their hands on, further contributing to the deaths that were recorded in the country. However, the process of fleeing was attributed to increased mortality during the famine as a large number of them died from drowning and the cold weather. When the famine took toll of the region, most farmers and occupants of the north sold off their farms and rafters for food, which affected their ability to flee from the ravaging impacts of the famine (Yurong, 2000). Based on this description and the analysis in the paper, the north China famine of 1921 was because of both manmade and natural causes. Prior to the beginning of the crisis, the region was subjected to massive famine, which affected the farming process in the region. With the increased famine, the farms could not be tilled and this led to a reduction in the overall harvest from the farms. However, the actions of the leaders and the people in the region also accelerated the famine and led to its devastating impacts to people and their environment (Gray, 2003). At a time when the population was growing rapidly, the leaders forced the people to prioritize the farming of opium, a crop that was used in the processing of cocaine. With arable and ample lands for agriculture used in the cultivation of cash crops, the foods crops were planted in less fertile lands and this affected the overall yields. Most of the farms produced less yields, which could not support the people as the population, had grown beyond the available natural resources (Xu, 2014). Apart from the misuse of fertile lands for opium growth, the existence of the warlords in the region also led to the devastation as they hampered normal operations of the government, further affecting the process of relief food provision to the people (Yurong, 2000). The China national party was forced to fight with the challenge of famine and the devastating impacts of the war waged by the warlords. As a result, resources were focused on warfare as opposed to increasing the food reserves in the country. Other causes of the famine Apart from the cause’s associated human actions, natural events also contributed to the spread and severity of the famine, especially the 1928-1930 famine. One of the major natural contributors to the famine was drought, a continued spell of lack of rain that engulfed the northern parts of china as represented in the ring back report on trees around this time. Lack of adequate rainfall due to the drought affect farming in the country and contributed to the decline in food reserves. Before the 20th century, the region of northern china was occasioned by continuous floods, which also wreaked havoc in the region and affected farming activities. However, in 1850s, the river changed its course and this exposed the northern part of the country to reduced supply of water for irrigation and farming. As a result, the 1934-1939 droughts were directly because of the change in the course of the yellow river, which deprived the area of agricultural water. From 1932-1937, a bigger region of the northern china territory was subjected to high temperatures due to the long and extensive drought which affected the water supply in the region. As a result, majority of the people could not be able to work in their agricultural lands, further contributing to the reduced food production and storage in the region. Conclusion China has been characterised by a catastrophic history, with a number of events affecting its economic, political and social development including earthquakes, famine, wars among others. Famine however remains the most prevalent in the country’s history as was witnessed in the northern china famine of 1920s and 1930s. During this time, several factors contributed to the decrease in agricultural production in the country, which led to the devastation of the famine several issues, have been associated with the spread of the famine. However, this paper has highlighted that the famine was directly because of human actions, including lack of proper leadership, misuse of arable land for opium farming and over focus on the elimination of the warlords. The leadership of Chiang Kai Shek also contributed by adopting policies which could not increase the total agricultural production in the region, as he focused on the unification and fighting of the warlords. 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