Shoulder to Shoulder with the Chinese People

by+Liu+Haile

During the eight-year Chinese Peoples War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression， many countries offered moral and material support， and a great number of foreign friends came to China due to conscience and the desire to support human justice. Not only did they witness the horrors of the Japanese invasion， but many participated in the Chinese revolution and some even sacrificed their lives for China.

Telling the World about Yanan

After the CPC Central Committee and the Red Army completed the Long March and arrived in northern Shaanxi in 1935， they began to actively call for a nationwide war against the Japanese invasion. In the spring of 1936， the CPC Central Committee sent a secret message to its underground organization in Shanghai， hoping to invite a sincere Western journalist and a doctor to the Soviet area in northern Shaanxi. Coincidentally， American writer Edgar Snow had just arrived in Shanghai for a special visit with Soong Ching-ling and expressed wishes to understand the red Soviet area. He thus became the first foreign journalist to visit the northern Shaanxi Soviet area.

In July 1936， Snow arrived in northern Shaanxi with American doctor George Hatem， where he spent four months investigating CPCs approach to the anti-Japanese war， the military and political quality of Red Army officers and soldiers， and construction of the anti-Japanese base area. Based on his investigation and interviews， Snow authored Red Star over China， the first Western book to depict an accurate picture of the CPC and Chinas red political power to the world， greatly boosting the influence and prestige of the CPC both at home and abroad.

Inspired by Snows exemplary dedication， numerous foreign journalists， writers， and scholars followed suit. Incomplete statistics show that more than 50 foreign journalists came to China during the war against Japanese invasion.

In early 1937， American journalist Agnes Smedley arrived in Yanan and interviewed many Red Army officers and soldiers. She even delivered passionate lectures， declaring， “You are not alone. You are struggling for justice. You are part of the worldwide antifascist movement.”

In June 1937， Thomas Arthur Bisson， an American Asia specialist， visited Yanan to meet Mao Zedong， Zhou Enlai， Qin Bangxian （better known as Bo Gu） and other CPC leaders and discuss CPCs anti-Japanese policy and cooperation between the Kuomintang and CPC.

During this period， Dr. Anneliese Martens from Germany， American sinologist Owen Lattimore， and American photojournalist Harrison Forman also visited Yanan and the Shaanxi-GansuNingxia Base Area.

Foreign reporters who visited Yanan and the Shaanxi-GansuNingxia Base Area after the nationwide war of resistance broke out included James Bertram from Britain， Hans Shippe from Germany， Theodore Harold White from the United States， and American， British， and Soviet correspondents participating in a Sino-foreign journalist group visiting northwestern China.

Braving storms of gunshots and shells， they witnessed the aggressive behavior of the Japanese militarists and reported the truth about the Chinese peoples struggle against the invaders， inspiring sympathy and support for China from the international community. Of particular note， a group of Western journalists， following the example set by Edgar Snow， broke through blockades and made their way to the anti-Japanese base in northern Shaanxi. News agencies around the world relayed their faithful reports on the CPC and the battlefield behind enemy lines.

Fighting Side by Side

The just Chinese defense against Japanese aggression won great support and aid from the international community， as evidenced by people from the Soviet Union， the United States， and other countries who risked their lives to help the Chinese people during the direst days of the war.

After the outbreak of the full-scale anti-Japanese war， upon an invitation from the Chinese government， Moscow dispatched a volunteer air force to China.

On October 14， 1939， while leading his team to bomb a Japanese base， Captain Kulishenko was intercepted over Wuhan by the Japanese fleet. His formation shot down six enemy planes. Severely damaged by the enemy， however， his plane crash landed over the Yangtze River with one engine. The bombardier and the gunner survived by ejecting from the plane， but Kulishenko eventually succumbed to fatigue， sacrificing his young life for the Chinese peoples war against Japanese aggression. In 2009， he was cited as one of the Top 100 Heroic Models with Outstanding Contribution to the Founding of New China.

During the Chinese Peoples War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression， the American Volunteer Group known as Flying Tigers began inspiring terror in the enemy. It was established by Claire Lee Chennault （1893-1958）， lieutenant general of the U.S. Army Air Corps.

Upon an invitation from the government of the Republic of China （1912-1949） in early July 1937， Chennault came to China to investigate the Chinese Air Force and serve as an adviser.

After the outbreak of the full-scale anti-Japanese aggression war， upon a suggestion by Soong May-ling， Chennault joined a group establishing an aviation academy in Kunming to train Chinese pilots with American standards. In August 1941， he was appointed captain of the American Volunteer Group， nicknamed Flying Tigers， to aid the Chinese Air Force.

In May 1942， the highway linking Yunnan to Burma was destroyed. China and the United States jointly established an air route between Assam in northeastern India and Chinas Kunming， Yibin， Chengdu， and Chongqing. It was dubbed “the Hump” due to the shape of the Himalayan Mountains it passed over.

From May 1942 to September 1945， Chinese and American air fleets flew a combined 1.5 million hours， transporting 725，000 tons of strategic supplies and 33，477 individuals， significantly supporting Chinese combat against Japanese invaders.

Nevertheless， both China and the United States suffered heavy losses， including 609 planes and 1，500 pilots.

Other foreign friends joined the Chinese fight against Japanese aggression， including Hong Thuy （1908-1956）， a Vietnamese major general who participated in battles in Shanxi and Hebei， and American General Joseph Stilwell （1883-1946）， who served as chief of staff of the China Theater， commander in chief of the China-Burma-India Theater， and commander in India. Among military observers were USMC officer Evans Fordyce Carlson（1896-1947）， John Stewart Service， and John Davies.

These brave souls either worked on the battlefield， served as military command， or conducted military observation， making remarkable contributions to enhancing cooperative combat against fascists.

Foreign Doctors

The Chinese peoples war against Japanese invasion received universal sympathy and assistance from peace-loving individuals and organizations around the globe. Streams of foreign doctors headed to China from every direction to provide medical relief on the battlefields.

Among the many foreign doctors coming to China， a standout was Norman Bethune （1890-1939）. In 1938， he was commissioned by the Canadian Communist Party and the American Communist Party to lead a medical team of Canadian and American doctors to Yanan. In August the same year， he was appointed medical adviser in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Command of the Eighth Route Army.

Bethune worked hard to turn the rear hospital in the military command into a model hospital， crafting a wide variety of medical apparatuses and equipment， training his medical staff， and compiling illustrated medical manuals. To minimize pain and better care for the wounded， he often performed surgery close to the battlefield.

In February 1939， he and his 18 colleagues performed nonstop battlefield surgery on 115 wounded soldiers for 69 hours amidst Japanese gunfire in central Hebei. In October of the same year， he contracted a bacterial infection after accidentally slicing his middle finger during a surgery in the Motianling Campaign in Laiyuan County， Hebei. He insisted on continuing to work despite his worsening injury and died of blood poisoning early in the morning on November 12， 1939.

At least 38 notable documented foreign friends provided medical aid for China during its anti-Japanese war.

Of them， some arrived as independent visitors， including George Hatem from the United States， Richard Brown from Cana- da， Kathleen Hall from New Zealand， Hans Müller from Germany， and Richard Frey from Austria. Others joined medical aid groups， such as Parsons with the International Medical Team to Aid China， Dwarkanath Shantaram Kotnis with the Indian National Congress Medical Mission to China， as well as Herbert Baer from Germany， Jasul Kranzdorf from Romania， and Ianto Kaneti from Bulgaria， who joined the International Red Cross Medical Team.

While in China， they overcame a shortage of resources， not to mention a dangerous working environment sated with bullets and bombs， while using their medical expertise to treat wounded Chinese soldiers on the front lines， provide medical assistance and training for Chinese medical workers， and participate in the establishment of clinics， contributing considerably to Chinas war against Japanese fascists.