CCP Was Founded by Foreign Forces and Brought Disaster to Nearly Half of Delegates at 1st Congress

In a file photo, youths are seen at a rally during the height of the Red Guard upheaval waving copies of the collected writings of Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong, often referred to as Mao's Little Red Book, and carrying a poster of Karl Marx. AP Photo

Commentary

Free societies critical of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) are often labeled by Chinese propaganda as “hostile foreign forces.” However, history tells us that the establishment of the CCP itself was facilitated by foreign forces.

More than a century ago, the first congress of the CCP was held with only 15 delegates, two of whom were foreigners.

The first elected CCP leader, Chen Duxiu, later renounced the party, saying that he realized that such a political platform would eventually lead to the dictatorship of the party and party leaders. He also said that the CCP’s loyalty was to the Soviet Union rather than the Chinese people.

About half of the 13 Chinese delegates met with a tragic end. Some were executed, some were persecuted by the CCP, and some openly renounced the party.

Pledging Allegiance to the Soviet Union

Li Yuanhua, a Chinese historian, said that the CCP’s initial organizers were two Westerners, Henk Sneevliet (also known by the pseudonym “Maring”) and Vladimir Abramovich Neiman Nikolsky.

Maring, a Dutchman and a wanted man, and Nikolsky, a Russian spy, were secretly sent to China in 1921.

“According to the recollections of the delegates at the First Congress of the CCP, these two men were sent to China by the Far East Bureau of the Communist International to help establish the CCP. The CCP received direct funding from them, with each delegate given 100 taels for travel expenses and an additional 50 taels as starting funds after the meeting,” he said.

According to Mr. Li, in the early stages, the Communist International provided all funding for the CCP, including salaries for registered party members.

“From historical facts, it can be seen that the establishment of the CCP was essentially the creation of a branch of the Far East Bureau of the Communist International, fully subordinate to the Communist International. After the outbreak of the Sino–Soviet conflict in 1929, the CCP shouted the slogan of ‘defending the Soviet Union,’ which was completely contrary to the interests of the Chinese nation,” he said.

The Sino-Soviet conflict in 1929 was primarily triggered by disputes over the control of the Chinese Eastern Railway in Manchuria. In July 1929, Chinese forces seized Soviet-controlled parts of the railway, prompting a strong military response from the Soviet Union. The Soviet Red Army launched a series of offensives, defeating Chinese forces and reasserting control over the railway. The conflict ended in December 1929 with a ceasefire agreement, restoring the pre-conflict status quo.

Guo Jun, president of the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times, said that the CCP emerged and later survived partly because of a unique political environment.

“The 1920s was the most open era in China’s modern history,” Ms. Guo said. “There were many political parties and scholarly figures, and society was relatively open and tolerant, with hundreds of political parties and factions. At the time, the addition or subtraction of one more party did not seem significant. However, by chance and with the full support of the Soviet Union, the CCP eventually seized power by force, which was probably something that no one could have imagined at the beginning. Therefore, the CCP is truly a foreign force.”

Many Delegates Met Tragic End

Independent TV producer Li Jun shared some details about what happened to the 13 Chinese delegates in their later years.

Chen Duxiu, the most famous and influential member of the CCP at the time, didn’t attend the first congress but sent a representative, Bao Huisheng, to attend the meeting with a letter written by him. Chen was eventually elected secretary of the First Central Secretariat, becoming the first leader of the CCP.

“At that time, Chen Duxiu was a representative of the New Culture Movement in China and was also in charge of the early organization of the CCP in Shanghai,“ Mr. Li said. ”Therefore, the delegates of the Communist International specifically instructed Chen Duxiu to attend the conference, but he refused on the pretext that he was busy with his official duties as the director of the Department of Education in Guangdong Province.

“Nowadays, scholars generally believe that the reason why Chen did not attend the conference may have had something to do with the fact that it was initiated, organized, and led by the Communist International. Chen had always opposed the idea of the CCP becoming part of the Communist International and pledging allegiance to the Soviet Union, which he considered a shameful act against the Chinese nation.”

Mr. Li added that in November 1929, Chen was expelled from the CCP for opposing its slogan of “armed defense of the Soviet Union.” He was later falsely accused of being a Japanese spy, which led to many trumped-up charges. In his later years, Chen wrote a book in which he stated that the so-called dictatorship of the proletariat was nothing of the sort; it was only the dictatorship of the party, which would ultimately lead to the dictatorship of the leaders.

Li Jun continued to recount that all 13 Chinese participants in the CCP’s First Congress met a tragic end.

“Li Hanjun, Deng Enming, He Shuheng, and Chen Tanqiu were executed by the Government of Republic of China (ROC); Li Da was tortured to death by the CCP in 1966 as a bourgeois representative of the Party and a bourgeois reactionary academic authority; Zhang Guotao, the Chairman of the Congress of the First National Congress, was later labeled as an anti-Party right opportunist because of his difference in opinion with Mao Zedong, and he was criticized very harshly. In April 1938, Zhang defected from the Party and surrendered to the government of the ROC and wrote a statement of resignation, saying that ’this CCP was no longer the Party I had longed for and fought for all my life;' Zhou Fohai and Chen Gongbo resigned from the CCP in 1922 and 1924 respectively; Li Hanjun, Pao Huisheng and Liu Renjing either resigned or were expelled from the Party; Wang Minmei died in August 1925 in Qingdao.”

Shi Shan, a senior writer and contributor to The Epoch Times, said on the show that Chen’s and Zhang Guotao’s testimonies were very instructive for people today who have an interest in understanding the CCP.

“Chen Duxiu, the first General Secretary of the CCP, issued a statement of withdrawal from the Party. Zhang Guotao’s memoirs are similarly significant historical documents. These individuals were undoubtedly idealists, among China’s most outstanding intellectuals, filled with passion and a desire to rebuild China and create a better future for humanity,“ Mr. Shi said. ”Their perspectives on the CCP are very telling and extremely important to us. They serve as valuable lessons for today’s Chinese people.”

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.