Supplement to Related Research
摘要
The Central Research Institute of Agriculture has meticulously compiled data in the fourth issue of the third volume of its Agricultural Situation Reports, illustrating the distribution of tenants across China’s provinces. Research conducted in 22 provinces and 891 counties reveals that among the current group of peasants, yeomen comprise the majority at 46%, closely followed by tenants at 29%, and semi-tenants at 25%. This distribution aligns with predictions made in my previous articles, “The Focus of the Chinese Tenant Problem,” published in Look On, No. 10 two years ago, and “From Tenant to Yeomen,” published in the Journal of Tsinghua University, Vol. IX, No. 4 last year. This data indicates that landless or smallholder peasants make up more than half of China’s farming population, presenting a pressing challenge in their lives. The Principle of People’s Livelihood was fundamentally created to address this issue. However, it is disheartening to note that the Nationalist government, despite being in power for many years, has yet to implement Sun Yat-sen’s vision. Even more perplexing is the claim made by a certain dean who stated that the land policy the Communist Party adopted in Jiangxi was “stolen” from the Three People’s Principles (namely, Nationalism, Democracy, the People’s Livelihood). It is clear that ideology cannot be equated with wealth, nor should it be hoarded like treasure. For the sake of social harmony, stability, and uniting the people to support the government against external forces, it is urgent to realize the principle of “land to the tiller.”