Influence Of The South Manchuria Railway Affiliated Areas In Northeast China

The South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas were the Japanese colinial region after the Russo—Japanese war similar to the China-Eastern Railway affiliated areas,which were managed by The South Manchuria Railway Company established in 1906,after taking over the former tsarist Russia's rights of the China-Eastern Railway affiliated areas. The South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas were the colonial region different from any other colonial regions in the world . Under the three colonial agencies of the South Manchuria Railway Company,the Japanese Kwantung Office and Kwantung Army headquarters'joint agreesion, which was a country within a country. In this region,Japan had series of priviledges such as administration, Justice, army, police and tax,start the terrible agreession against Northeast of China.Why was Japan so furious,how did the Manchuria railway affiliated areas formate,how did Japan take over the Russian rights of railway, which rights were taken over by the Japan from the Russia? These questions were complicated, which symbolized the speciality of the South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas.These questions were tightly around the four key treaties, which were the Treaty of Portsmouth,the Treaty of Northeast China matters,The China-Eastern Railway Contact ,The South Manchuria branch Railway Contact. In these four treaties, It was undoubtly that the China-Eastern Railway Contact was the base of Japanese rights and obligations in the South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas.Taking over Russian rights privately by Japan is the main clue in this paper. Before the Russo—Japanese war, Russia legally grabbed a series of rights in Northeast of China based on the traditional international law, including the railway rights and the series of vexatious priviledges: such as administration, justice, army, police and tax. Russia had legal railway rights in Northeast of China which were based on the contract realted the Sino-Russian Secret Treaty ;Other contracts were based on the Sino-Russian Secret Treaty. After the outbreak of Boxer Movement, Russia occupied the Northeast of China and attemptted to grab other rights accordingly. In fact, even if in traditional international law, it was difficult to find the legal base to Russia . Thus Russian expansion of the railway rights in Northeast of China were illegal.When the Russo—Japanese war was over, Japan knew its situation clearly, Japan decided to exclude the rights in the South Manchuria , in place of the requests of ceding territory and paying indemnities from Russia directly. But if Japan wanted to exclude the rights in the South Manchuria, grabbing the Russian rights in the South Manchuria was necessary. The Treaty of Portsmouth was signed between Japan and Russia,including the terms of rights'transfering in the South Manchuria. It was worth noting that Japan and Russia knew clearly the terms of rights'transfering privately was illegal in internationa law. In other words, the terms of Chinese railway rights'transfering in the Treaty of Portsmouth from Russia to Japan was void by a legal point of view. In order to make the the terms of Chinese railway rights'transfering legal, Japan enforced the Qing Dynasty to sign the Treaty of Northeast China matters ,which made the Qing Dynasty admit that the Russia and Japan's transfering the chinese railway rights was legal. Under the fabricated legal base, Japan's agression against the Northeast in China was further developed. In an international point of view, the Russia and Japan's transfering the Chinese railway rights privately had breached the principles of respecting for national sovereignty in the international law.Chinese government once protested, but facing the reality of Japanese agression, she could do nothing except lamenting.Japan implemented its Continental Policy through managing the South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas step by step, the South Manchuria Railway affiliated areas turned into the base of implementing Japanese agression.