Misreading Of The Republic :1916-1924 Beijing Congress

After 1911 Revolution, republic just establishes and west representative system is first time put into practice in China. In order to limit Yuan Shikai's dictatorship, the revolutionary party purposely promulgates Temporary Provisional constitution. The provisional constitution, which is promulgated in only one month because of the limited time, has fatal flaws in the respect of regime plan: power division between the presidential palace and the State Council is unclear, the legislative power is too great, and the executive power is unable to contend with the legislative power. All these lead to the abnormal structure of dual central system.After it is founded, the Congress limits government in all respects and impeaches cabinet members. Taking advantage of the second revolution, Yuan Shikai pursues expelled Kuomintang congressmen, dissolves Congress, and revises provisional constitution, making parliamentary competition politics transform into patriarchal authoritative politics.After the destruction of Yuan Shikai's monarchy, each school of political forces raises struggle of the new and old provisional constitution. Eager to share the achievements of opposing imperialism, Kuomintang and the Progressive Party neglect the flaws in the provisional constitution, and require that Temporary Provisional constitution and Congress should be restored unconditionally. To realize China's unification, Duan Qirui makes the concessions, restoring Temporary Provisional constitution, which henceforth becomes the legal proceeding to restrain all forces which enter political field. This provides the conditions under which the inherent malpractices are to expose in a brighter and more through way under the new historic conditions. Under the abnormal structure of dual central system, struggles between Presidential Palace and State Council never end, and Congress impeachments and tides to end cabinet never cease. The question to launch war against Germany makes the conflicts lead to the acme: all military governors of provinces declare independence, and request Congress should be dissolved, provisional constitution revised. However, this provisional constitution has not entrusted with the administrative sector right to dismiss Congress's. Li Yuanhong has to illegally dissolve Congress and Zhang Xun seizes the opportunity to restore the dethroned emperor.After the destruction of restoration, Duan Qirui realizes that Temporary Provisional constitution has created negative consequences in its intervention against executive power. He determines to end the restraint of Congress, and, under Liang Qichao's agitation, makes another constitution, and sets up the Congress——Anfu Congress,which is completely controlled by himself. This act encounters the firm opposition of Kuomintang congressman who take protecting constitution as their own duty. They go to Guangzhou, set up anther central government and Congress, making China henceforth break up between the north and south.The Anfu Congress has been in the eddy currents of legitimacy and illegitimacy. To realize the unification between the north and south, the incumbent president Xu Shichang proposes the convention of peace talk between north and south. However the north and south are very difficult to achieve the mutual recognition in the problem of new and old Congress, which makes the efforts to complete the unification by the peace talks become bubbles finally. Meanwhile, Beiyang split up and the war between Anhui Sector and Zhili breaks out, and Anfu Congress finally collapses because of Anhui clique's defeat.In 1922, republic tradition is restored. Congress is restored once more, and it still regards Temporary Provisional constitution as legitimate, making the malpractices of Temporary Provisional constitution system further display. The conflicts among president, cabinet, Congress and military powers upgrade, and the crisis affected broader areas. That Cao Kun becomes president by buying votes finally and theoretically overthrows Congress, abolishing Congress legally and theoretically and making public lose confidence towards the representative system. After Feng Yuxiang starts Beijing coup d'etat, Duan Qirui government cancels the constitutional tradition, and dissolves Congress, and Kuomintang also gives up the position of protecting constitution: all these make China start the large-scale national revolutionary movement.Besides China's lack of the social, economic and cultural conditions which support the multi-dimensional competitive democracy, as well as the domineering of Beiyang warlord force, the inspection of 1916—1924 political history of Congress based on provisional constitution suggests that the failure of Chinese early democracy results from the immaturity of the provisional constitution makers and the Congressmen on politics. Merely focusing on keeping away the despotism of Beiyang warlord group, they make constitution according to warlord, and neglect the important principle of organic balance mutual check between the legislative power and executive power. The historical inspection of this provisional constitution system which has various internal contradictions helps people understand the institutional factors of the defeat of 1911 Revolution, i.e. extreme importance of rational political design in the development process of politics; one of the roots of the political chaos at the beginning of the Republic of China. This also helps us further rethink why the parliamentary system fails so rapidly and why it is so easily abandoned by public.