Republic of China, circa 1970
From Alternative History
1945 - in December, the US Ambassdor to China, General George Marshall declines to mediate between the Nationalists and Communists in the civil war.
1946 - Harbin falls to Nationalists on June 5. The rest of the Communists including Lin Biao is captured. Xu Xianqian and He Long are captured at Shanxi. Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai captured in Yianan. Mao and Zhou are tried and executed while the rest were put in lengthy sentences.
1947 - the last Communists including Zhu De and Pend Dehui were captured in northern Jiangsu region. The first National Congress is convened in Nanking (as in OTL) on 25 December.
1948 - Chiang Kai-shek elected President (with Li Zhongren as Vice-president) and nominates Chen Jitang as the Premier. Hyperinflation is controlled at 25% with Chiang Ching-kuo's acts to control financial security. Two battlions of Central Nationalist elite forces in Northeastern China are moved to Hunan and they queshed the forces of Tang Shengzhi. Chiang announces all villages in counties and zones in cities are to be directly elected immediately.
1949 - the last of the Communists in Guangdong, along with Ye Jianying, was captured in March. Chiang removes Lung Yun and Lu Han as Provincial Governors and removes the battalions from Yunan, Guizhou, and Sichuan to Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Li Zhongren dissents and conspires with Bai Chongxi, then Minister of National Defense to rebel against Chiang but at the last minute Bai pulls out. Li was captured, tried, and sentenced to indefinite imprisonment after Chiang personally pardoned him from execution. Because of this Li is impreached as Vice-president and Me Dewei becomes new Vice-president.
Zhang Xueliang, who kidnapped Chiang in Xian incident in 1936, is formally tried, convicted and sentenced to 10 year imprisonment. But because he has been detained since the end of Xian incident, Chiang agrees to release Zhang on the grounds of the length of detainment being longer than the sentencing. The condition is that Zhang must not be involved in politics for another 10 years.
1950 - large scale demonstrations broke out among university students in Peking, Shanghai, Nanking, Canton, Xian, Kunming, Chengdu, Amoy, Hangchow, Tsingtao, Changchun, and Shenyang over the extent of corruption among public officials. Chiang met representatives of student demonstrators in Nanking, Lee Teng-hui and Zhu Rongji and promised to crack down on corruptions. Kung Hsiang-hsi and Soong Tse-ven forced 75% of their confidenates to resign.
In May Kim Il-sung invades South Korea. The Republic China sends 2 battalions to quesh North Korea's forces. This infuriates Stalin and Chiang sends 5 battalions, two from his own Central forces, 1 from the former armies of Tang Sungji, one from Bai Chongxi, and one from Lung wen's former division, to Inner Mongolia areas to guard against Soviet invasions. The US and 20 Western countries sent in forces to aid South Korea after Soviet Union vetoed any resolutions to authorize defence of South Korea under UN authority.
In June, Chiang discusses with KMT members of the Legislative Yuan and agrees with members that an amendment to the ROC Constitution to authorize the Control Yuan to arrest, prosecute, and impreach officials and elected personnels of corruption. An law-enforcement team is set up under the Control Yuan that handles corruption investigations and have divisions for each province and municipality.
In Vietnam, Ho Chi-ming's Communists are losing support as their Chinese counterparts are losing insignificance. Finally, the last remnants are decimated by France at Hanoi in October.
1951 - the Anti-corruption amendment is ratified by the National Congress and becomes law. The Control Yuan sets up an Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and the first divisions are sent to Guangdong, Canton, Fujian, Jiangsu, Shanghai, and Peking where 90% of China's commerce activities are located. In the first month, 50% of Canton's public officials are convicted, stripped of position, and jailed. Governments become less bureaucratic as the lost personnels forced those who remained to become mroe efficient.
Kim Il-sung is defeated and captured by the battalion led by General Du Luming. He was taken to South Korea for trial and executed. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is no more, Korea is reunifed under the Republic of Korea, and now it is the Republic of China and Republic of Korea sharing the Sino-Korean border. Stalin is so furious but knowing that he cannot defeat China militarily he accepts this setback.
1952 - China is a signatory to the Treaty of San Francisco, the peace treaty between Japan and the Allied nations nding the Second World War. Japan returns Taiwan and the Penghu Islands to the Republic of China and China agrees to waive the right to state-level compensations. Any Taiwanese residents who prefer to live in Japan are allowed to live in Taiwan as long-term Japanese residents, but their children are not eligible to become Japanese citizens unless they relocate to Japan.
1953 - economic outputs exceeds pre-war levels. Chen Jitang resigns on the grounds of ill health and Chen Cheng succeeds him as Premier. Chen announces land reforms in which farmers get land and landowners receive compensations in government bonds for industrial development. Acts are enacted to encourage industrial developments.
Joseph Stalin dies and Krushenev succeeds. Chiang sends in message hoping the Chinese and Soviet Union leaders could have a face-to-face talk. Krushenev agrees and they meet in Nanking on 12 September. Krushenev promises to respect the territorial integrity of the Republif of China and both agree to hold a second referendum on the status of Outer Mongolia and talks about the Sino-Russian borders should re-open soon. The referendum is slated to occur in the first half of 1955.
1954 - the first electric-diesel locomotive is introduced on Canton-Nanking-Shanghai route.
In May Chiang Kai-shek is re-elected to another term. Me Dewei is re-elected as Vice-President.
1955 - Referendum is held on 20 March in Outer Mongolia. 70% express desires to return to Chinese rule. Soviet Union agrees and Outer Mongolia is officially returned to China and the ROC pledges to full autonomy.
Yangtze River Bridge construction begins in Nanking that will allow rail transport interrupted from Peking to Nanking. Plans are enacted to build rainroads throughout Guangdong, Fujian, Hunan, and Jiangxi provinces.
1956 - Anti-corruption drives are progressively becoming successful such that a poll on foreigners doing business in China interviewed shows 80% of them believe the incidence of corruption has fallen by 50%. The ROC government announces direct election of provincial-level city mayors and county chiefs in 1960. The government plans a rigourous public sanitary campaign to drive out common infectious disease by 1965.
1957 - The ROC government is in talks with the British government over the status of Hong Kong. Both sides agree that the status of Hong Kong should be discussed and more talks should follow.
Chiang meets with Dalai Lama, who has flown to Nanking for a visit. Dalai pledges Tibet will not seek independence and Chiang reaffirms as one of the two Regions of the Republic of China Tibet enjoys full autonomy on its affairs and sends its representatives to the National Congress, Legislative Yuan and Control Yuan in Nanking.
Kishi Nobusuke becomes the first Prime Minister of Japan to visit China since the end of the Sino-Japanese war. He openly apologized Japan's invasion to Chiang and both countries signed a memorandum of understanding of promoting economic and social co-operations.
The Yangtze River Bridge is completed. The ROC government announces an ambitious programme to build an extensive railroad network on the Western side of China for completion by 1968.
1958 - The ROC and the United Kingdom reach an agreement that Hong Kong should continue under British administration for a further 10 years and then under ROC jurisdiction. Due to Hong Kong's different laws both sides agree that the status of a Municipality like Shanghai or Canton or Peking is not suitable for Hong Kong. The territory should enjoy full autonomy as a Special Administrative Region.
There are a series of tense border incidents between China and India. Chiang Kai-shek agrees to meet Nehru in New Delhi in June to discuss the border issue.
1959 - The ROC initiates plans to build aivilian airports in major preparation for jet-age. The first phase starts and constructions breaks out for airports in Peking, Canton, Shanghai, Hangchow, Nanking, Foochow, Shantow, Amoy, Wuhan, Chungking, Chengtu, Xian, Changchun, Shengyang, Taiyuan.
The Legislative Yuan ratifies laws authorizing direct election of Provincial Governors and Municipalities under Executive Yuan's direct governance by 1962.
The ROC Ministry of Education announces nine-year universal free education for students to start in the 1960-61 academic year.
For the first time it becomes possible to travel to Chengtu from Canton by rail, after the conclusion of the project linking Nanning with Chungking and Chengtu.
In a shock development, Central Air Services announces buying 10 Boeing 707-320 for jet transport.
1960 - Chiang Kai-shek retires as President. Chen Cheng is elected President. he promises economic reforms and the deepening of democratic institutions to fulfill Sun Yat-sen's Three Principles. He immediately appoints Chiang as Special Advisor to the President and many are suspecting Chiang still holds real power.
CNAC announces buying 5 Boeing 707-320B/C for Shanghai-Tokyo-SanFrancisco and Shanghai-Hong Kong-Delhi-Beirut-London/Frankfurt services.
For the first time, direct elections of mayors of Municipalities directly under Executive Yuan and prinvincial Governors are held. KMT holds about 75% of offices with the rest independents.
1961 - Industrial production is now 250% of the pre-Sino-Japanese war levels. GDP per capita is now US$500, which is 10 times of 1950 levels with textiles, petroleum, shipbuilding, steel, toys comprising a majority of China's industrial productions.
1962 - Chloera and typhoid fever incidence is 10% of the 1952 level and Hepitaitis A is now a tarhget of government health plan.
CNAC and Central Air Service order Boeing 727-100s.
1963 - A comprehensive rail plan for Western China is now complete. Each priovince on average has 700 km of rail lines now. The government announces plans to build the first expressways in China with route of Canton-Changsha-Nanking-Shanghai, and Canton-Shatow-Amoy-Hangchow-Shanghai.
1964 - Economists start to mutter "the China miracle". GDP per capita is now US$800. The ROC government discusses with Pan Am to buy all shares for CNAC. Pan Am sells all shares to the ROC government and the airline is renamed China Airlines.
Chiang Kai-shek announces to step down as KMT Chief Executive. Many observers consider that Chiang is now really retiring as a public figure. The KMT elects a young Chiang Ching-kuo as the new Chief Executive but he turns down. Eventually He Yinyian succeeds as the new Chief Executive.
1965 - A group of young professionals announce forming a new party called the Liberal Party (LP) of China that opposes Sun Yat-sen's stance on social and economic development and supports market economy. They announce candidates for the 1966 Presidential election. The KMT announces it welcomes any opposition parties competing with them as long as they are lawful and do not seek violent means to obtain power.
1966 - The Presidential election is held and Yen Ka-ken is the new KMT candidate while Chiang Ching-kuo is the Vice-presidnetial candidate. The LP nominates Tung Ho-yun, a shipping tycoon (and father of Tung Chee-hwa, the first HKSAR's Chief Executive in OTL) as presidential candidate. Although Shanghai and Canton elected many National Congress members that are market-orienting, because of KMT's rural base Yen was elected with 65% of Congress votes.
Britain and China agree Hong Kong passes and enforces its own laws and enjoys a full autonomy when it is returned to China in 1969. Hong Kong Special Administrative Region will elect its own National Congress, Legislative Yuan and Control Yuan members with its own electoral regulations.
1967 - The LP continues to increase its base. More developed provinces and municipalities become competitions between the KMT and LP and for the first time, Shanghai's mayor is a LP member and the Municipal Council has a LP majority.
A constitutional amendment is passed in the National Council that Hong Kong will have full autonomy with itself able to determine its own laws and the ROC is responsible for its external relations and Hong Kong determines its own means to elect National Congress, Legislative Yuan and Control Yuan members.
1968 - A group of university students riot in Shanghai promoting communism. President Yen announces orders to arrest the protesters. The riot is stopped in one day. The students are sentenced to 1 year imprisonment.
GDP per capita is now US$1,600.
The ROC government announces its intention to allow a second airline to compete with China Airlines, and selling Centeal Air Service.
The ROC government announces building 3000km of expressways for the coastal provinces and municipalities and Taiwan over the next 6 years.
1969 - Central Air Services is sold to a consortium between Swire Holdings and Hotung family. Swire plans to merge it with Cathay Pacific and forming the second largest airline of China. The ROC government allows a group of Shanghai merchants headed by Y.K. Pao to set up a third airline to be called Far Eastern Airlines.
T.S. Lo, a grandson from Sir Robert Ho Tung, is elected as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Hong Kong officially becomes a Special Administrative Region of the Republic of China. In the handover ceremony attended by Britain's Queen Elizabeth and President Yen in Hong Kong, Yen promises Hong Kong will be with full internal autonomy such as using common law as its legal system. Former president Chiang Kai-shek, and US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger are among the many guests who attend the ceremony. T.S. Lo farewells the last British Governor Sir David Trench, who leaves Hong Kong with Queen Elizabeth II on the royal yacht Britannia.
1970 - A group of urban intellectuals based in Shanghai founds the Social Democratic Party of China (SDP) that calls for a complete nationalization of national economy and plans to compete with KMT and LP in the 1971 Legislative Yuan and 1972 presidential election.
Portugal announces it is leaving Macau after 416 years as it wants to put its resources to quesh anti-colonial rebellions in Africa. The ROC and Portugal reaches an agreement to return tmacau to China on 1 January 1971 and Macau's status in the ROC will be a SAR similar to Hong Kong.
