alternatehistory.com
Event: Chinese flag referendum, 2004
Qilai! Qilai!
A history of Modern China
Event: The Flag Referendum - January 2004
A history of Modern China
Event: The Flag Referendum - January 2004
A fundamental ballot item in the 2004 Chinese elections was a referendum on the continued use of the "Five Star flag" which had been in use by the Mainland since the Maoist Revolution of 1949, and had been used on Taiwan since the unification of China in 1990.
However, many people by the turn of the century began to express their concerns that the flag was improper in referencing the "one-ness" of China. Many wanted to restore the "sun flag" (which was largely rejected by people who disliked the memory of the Kuomintang regime, and the KMT in general), a maintaining of the status quo (Largely disliked by Taiwanese, non-leftists, and moderates), or adopting a "new flag" (largely unknown).
Before the election, an organization called "National Alliance For The Restoration of the Flag of the Republic" emerged in China, calling for the restoration of the Five Races Under One Union flag, which had been utilized by the Republic of China from 1912 to 1928, before it was replaced with the Kuomintang flag.
While the Five Races flag had been utilized by the corrupt Beiyang Government during that period, many noted that historically, that was the flag that was largely approved by Dr. Sun Yat-sen. Critics of the proposal railed on the fact that the flag was heavily utilized by the Japanese in their puppet regimes of Manchukuo and China-Nanjing.
The proponents of the flag rebuffed these criticism, claiming that unless the Chinese people reclaim and rehabilitate the flag of the five races, it would forever be marked with the stains of imperialism. They argued that many flags had stains upon them, and that through persistence and kindness, they could ensure it remained with goodness. They pointedly used the examples of France, whose flag was originally used under the actions of decapitating anything and anyone who wasn't up to the regime's standards. The flag of the Soviet Union had once been a symbol of bloody tyranny under Stalinism, but was now a shining symbol of forward progress for the world; so on.
The Flag Referendum, held on Election Day, saw the majority of Chinese voters supporting the Five-Race option, seeing it as the best "balance" between China's Communist and Capitalist sides, and the "long-standing establishment of democracy".
Thus, effective February 1st, the official state flag of the People's Republic of China would be changed from the Five-Star Flag, to the Five-Race flag. However, there was a lengthy period of time (a year), for people to trade in their current flags, either of the Kuomintang or Maoist China, for the current People's Republic flag; as well as for businesses, schools and government offices to change the flags as well.
The KMT and Maoist flags were not removed from Sun Yat-sen's mausoleum, but the "new/old" flag was added, as the three flags represented the unity of his legacy.
In 2004, there were only a handful of souls who remembered when the Republic flew the Five-Race flag. The flag represented the concepts of unity, democracy, and freedom once more.
(credit: AlexRY)
However, many people by the turn of the century began to express their concerns that the flag was improper in referencing the "one-ness" of China. Many wanted to restore the "sun flag" (which was largely rejected by people who disliked the memory of the Kuomintang regime, and the KMT in general), a maintaining of the status quo (Largely disliked by Taiwanese, non-leftists, and moderates), or adopting a "new flag" (largely unknown).
Before the election, an organization called "National Alliance For The Restoration of the Flag of the Republic" emerged in China, calling for the restoration of the Five Races Under One Union flag, which had been utilized by the Republic of China from 1912 to 1928, before it was replaced with the Kuomintang flag.
While the Five Races flag had been utilized by the corrupt Beiyang Government during that period, many noted that historically, that was the flag that was largely approved by Dr. Sun Yat-sen. Critics of the proposal railed on the fact that the flag was heavily utilized by the Japanese in their puppet regimes of Manchukuo and China-Nanjing.
The proponents of the flag rebuffed these criticism, claiming that unless the Chinese people reclaim and rehabilitate the flag of the five races, it would forever be marked with the stains of imperialism. They argued that many flags had stains upon them, and that through persistence and kindness, they could ensure it remained with goodness. They pointedly used the examples of France, whose flag was originally used under the actions of decapitating anything and anyone who wasn't up to the regime's standards. The flag of the Soviet Union had once been a symbol of bloody tyranny under Stalinism, but was now a shining symbol of forward progress for the world; so on.
The Flag Referendum, held on Election Day, saw the majority of Chinese voters supporting the Five-Race option, seeing it as the best "balance" between China's Communist and Capitalist sides, and the "long-standing establishment of democracy".
Thus, effective February 1st, the official state flag of the People's Republic of China would be changed from the Five-Star Flag, to the Five-Race flag. However, there was a lengthy period of time (a year), for people to trade in their current flags, either of the Kuomintang or Maoist China, for the current People's Republic flag; as well as for businesses, schools and government offices to change the flags as well.
The KMT and Maoist flags were not removed from Sun Yat-sen's mausoleum, but the "new/old" flag was added, as the three flags represented the unity of his legacy.
In 2004, there were only a handful of souls who remembered when the Republic flew the Five-Race flag. The flag represented the concepts of unity, democracy, and freedom once more.
(credit: AlexRY)
- Asami
- Word Count: 530