Manawatu Evening Standard. THURSDAY, OCT. 13, 1932. CHINA AND THE LYTTON REPORT.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LII, Issue 269, 13 October 1932, Page 6

Manawatu Evening Standard. THURSDAY, OCT. 13, 1932. CHINA AND THE LYTTON REPORT.

The denunciation of the Lytton Report by 15 members oi the ! Chinese Central Executive and j their call for armed action are in- | dicative of the feelings aroused i in China since the League oi | Nations published the Cornmis- | sion’s recommendations for a | settlement ox the Sino-Japanese | dispute regarding Manchuria, j These members of the Central ] Executive, who include leading ; figures in Chinese politics, may i be said to express ofiieial opinion ! on the subject. The CommisI sion’s suggestions for the demilitarisation oi Manchuria, for the establishment oi a special ! autonomous regime, the surnmon- | ing of a proposed advisory confer- ] ence, and the recognition of : Japan's rights and interests in j Manchuria are, state the signas tories, incompatible with China’s I sovereignty and territorial and j administrative integrity. Holdi ing that it will be "suicidal for | China to place further reliance on | the League, which has fully ex- ] posed its impotence to uphold ’ justice,” they make a call for ; armed resistance as the "only effective means of saving the prej sent situation,” and ask for pub- | lie opinion to support a military | expedition to recover the territory i now lost in Manchuria. It will | be noted that the Chinese do not I refer to the name “Manchukuo” ; by which the new State is now known. To them it is still part of their territory, though declared a separate Republic- and administered by officials under the tutelage oi -Japan. It was evident from the; outset that the Commission’s recommendations would please neither party, and if the call for armed action reflects official opinion in China there is grave danger -of’another conflagration in the East. Yet it j is difficult to see what China has] to gain by precipitate action. | She is vastly inferior to Japan in, armaments and though, as the j fighting around Shanghai proved, j her soldiers are fearless and in- ] spired with national pride, they ! would enter a conflict with severe handicaps. The Japanese Government has; attacked the report for failing to] recognise the historical facts,! and the part played by Japan in; saving Manchuria from Russian; aggression and checking the ban- - ditry which has been a menace;to the interests of both Japan and \ China. But -Japan is not wholly absolved from blame for the I threatening situation. She for' long flouted the League of; Nations over the matter, and; then by actively promoting and; later recognising the new Repub-: lie of Manchukuo has inflamed’ the racial feelings of the Chinese, j In reply to the United States’s ] Note insisting upon the mainten- \ ance of the ‘‘open door” policy] in China, Japan affirmed her vocaey of this in respect to Man-j churia, but emphasised that she] was suffering great loss from the chaos in China. Admittedly, j that is a strong point in Japan's j favour, Japanese initiative only! having been the means of sup-; Dressing the bandits who rove the country doing great harm. But r had Japan, as requested by the] Commission, refrained from j recognising Manchukuo, the i clouds may not have been so] threatening to-day. Russia also l

enters the matter by reason of her Manchurian interests. The Commission insisted that the Soviet Republic must not be ignored in any settlement because to do so would endanger future peace. Its reminder to other Powers of their obligations is another most important aspect of the matter. Envisaging a settlement in accordance with League principles, the Commission has recommended the League, after consulting Japan and China, to summon an advisory conference in an endeavour to solve the problem. The weakness of the plan lies in the apparent difficulty of bringing the two principal parties together. Japan has threatened to leave the League if events do not satisfy her. and now China is critical oi its power to uphold justice. The way out of the trouble does not seem clear. It now remains for the Council of the League to deal with the report.