The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1929-12-13
THE SECOND ANNIVERSARY
OF THE CANTON UPRISING

proletarat struggled determinedly for the Rev.
olution and suffered defeats (as the Chang
Sha massacre, the failure of the Shanghai and
Nan-Chang uprisings, the defeat of the revolu-
tionary armies of Ho Long and Yei Ting, etc.
in the face of the united forces OF the bour-
geois-militarist reaction and world imperial
ism. The workers and peasants in Canton, be-
ing one of the most revolutionary detachments
of the Chinese proletariat, at the ebb of the
revolutionary tide, heroically made the last
stand against the rising reaction and imperial
ism and openly declared that "the Kuomintang
Flag of the White Sun in the Blue Sky has be-
come symbol of terrorism; the Red Flag of
the Crossed Hammer and Sickle is our only
revolutionary banner" So on Dec. II, 1927,
at three o'clock in the "quet morning" in the
historical city of Canton, they started the up
rising, the heroic rear-guard fight of the Chi
nese proletariat against the suppressng forces
Of reaction.
III.
Under the leadership of the Chinese Commu-
mist Party and with the aid of the revolving
garrison, the workers and peasants IN Canton,
organized into red guards hitherto unframed
in firing and fighting some armed with modern
machine guns, rifles, bombs; some with sickles
fashioned guns and pistols; some with sickles
bamboo-swords, clubs; some with nothing &C.
cept their blood and flesh, fought unrelentngy
against the mercenary army of the Kuomntang
militarists. After several hours of bitter fight
the Red Guards succeeded in driving their foes
out of Canton and occupied important govern
ment and public buildings. Before dawn the
whole city of Canton became "Red" and Dol
shevik." The Soviet government was establish
ed A full Soviet program was adopted and
enacted. The feverish and systematic achieve
ments of the Chinese proletariat in the upris-
ing remain red-letter page in the history Of
the Chinese and the world revolution.
The uprising a thunderbolt out of
blue sky to the militarsts and the imperialists
and its success surprised them so much that
the reactionary mltarists ceased fighting
among themselves and united against the work
ers and peasants The imperialists were great
ly responsible for the suppression Of the up
rising. Japanese and French warships fired
Canton and gave rise to great fires. Eng
lsh, Japanese, American and French warships
blocked the Pearl River to prevent the Red
Guards from crossing it to pursue the beaten
Kuomintang army. On the second day of the
Uprising, the militarists with the help and pro-
lection from the imperialist gunboats launched
desperate attacks Canton, but were repeat
edly repulsed by the Red Guards 1t was only
on the third day Of the Uprising that the Red
forces were crushed by the united, better
equipped, more experienced and larger forces
of the militarists and the imperalists.
~.
The Canton uprising did not last longer than
three days But its historical significance is
great and permanent After unmasking the
counter-revolution of the national and upper
petty bourgeoisie Of the Kuomintang, it points
out the utter incapability of the Chinese bour-
geoisie to accomplish the revolution 1t also
proves that only Soviet form of government
can eove the fundamental problems of China.
After the suppression of the Uprising, the
bourgeois feudast- mitarst Kuomintang has
surrendered completely to the imperasts and
not tentative step was taken for the solution
Of the basic problems--abor, agrarian and
other social problems. The grave and gigantic
antagonisms and contradictions among the mill
artists re~7'eceNtino conflicting provincial bour-
geos and feudalistic interests caused in
cessant civil wars. And instead of continuing
the bourgeois democratic revolution against
Imperialism, the Kuomintang militarsts, cleft"
and right wings, ct al, have sought support
and protection in the arms of different i'm
perialists and became their willing tools Be-
sides a long litany of pro-imperialist records
to their credit, the recent provocation on the