Zhiyi Yang’s Poetry, History, Memory: Wang Jingwei and China in Dark Times (“the Book”) is a biased portrayal of a controversial historical figure, packaged in sometimes artful, but frequently obtuse, language. This response, however, focuses on the Book’s biggest problems—distortion of facts, mischaracterizations and selective use of source material. The Book was published by the University of Michigan Press in … Read More
Life in Occupied Territories
Photo shows Nanjing streets with tea houses, broadcast station, train station, Xuanwu Lake, Confucius Temple, taken in 1941, a year after the Wang Jingwei Regime was established. (Shanghai Times, March 30, 1941.)What did Wang Jingwei aim to accomplish in establishing the Reorganized National Government (RNG)? How did the leaders of the regime view the mission, and how was it executed? … Read More
What Did Wang Jingwei Aim to Achieve with His Government?
Wang Jingwei declares the establishment of the Reorganized National Government in Nanjing on March 30, 1940 (Wikimedia Commons)To this day, Wang Jingwei’s breakaway from Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalist government in Chongqing to form the Reorganized National Government (RNG) in Nanjing remains a heated topic. Academics and others around the world continue to debate the RNG’s success and failure; and most of … Read More