Research On The Opium-Banning Campaign Of Shanxi Province In The Early Republic Of China (1917-1927)

As one of the most serious social problems in modern society, the harm of opium and drugs has attracted great attention from all Successive governments. A large scale of ten year anti smoking campaign was launched in the late Qing Dynasty. The Northern Government continued smoking decisions, and achieved a great victory in in the national ban on opium poppy cultivation and the cessation of the entry of British and Indian opium into China. In the period of the Northern Warlords, the warlords of the provinces have the army, the power is very large. To raise their pay and collect special taxes, they encouraged to cultivating and trafficking drugs, Causing the drug to spread again in the end. During the same period, Shanxi banned drugs seriously and achieved certain results under the control of Yan Xishan.This paper comprehensively examines the policies and behaviors of the government of Shanxi province in the early Republic of China. On the one hand as close as possible to show the history of Shanxi’s smoking status at the time, Shanxi ban on smoking in many angles, in-depth perspective, so that we better understand the current situation of government behavior and social. On the other hand, Comparing with the fact that other provinces to encourage manufacturing, deeply reflecting on the gains and losses of Shanxi’s smoking ban, we can reveal the cause of the smoke disaster in modern China and how thoroughly eradicate opium problem in the new period.From the investigation, it is found that Shanxi has made significant achievements, and rated as exemplary province of Beiyang government under the rule of the warlords Yan Xishan. However, in the course of nearly a hundred years of history, the opium has formed a deformed industry. It had a symbiotic relationship with modern political, economic, diplomatic and cultural conditions. Opium tax is one of the important economic pillars for the survival of warlords and warlords is the main culprit of opium, therefore, the Republic of China is the inevitable result of the Chinese warlords politics and its rule. Under the impact of the decline of the small peasant economy and the tide of commodity economy, the farmers grow opium and seek survival. From the social point of view, drug abuse is a social condition. It is closely related to Moral turpitude in the period of social unrest, the level of education and health culture and people’s psychological characteristics. In addition, whether the drug can be eradicated or not in modern society is also an important diplomatic problem. That have a great relationship with the policy of imperialism to China. Britain, Japan and other imperialist exported drugs to China, implemented the crime of drug policy,which Undermined China’s anti smoking behavior.