Former Site of the Anti-Tobacco Seedling Tax Struggle in Dongxiang

Former Site of the Anti-Tobacco Seedling Tax Struggle in Dongxiang

The Former Site of the Anti-Tobacco Seedling Tax Struggle in Dongxiang is a classic red tourism attraction.

The Former Site of the Anti-Tobacco Seedling Tax Struggle in Dongxiang is located in Xiangshan Natural Village, Xiangshan Village, Bangtou Town, Xianyou County, Putian City.

The tobacco seedling tax was a major economic pillar for both the old and new warlords in Fujian. After the victory of the Northern Expedition, the general public called on the government to ban the cultivation of opium poppies and the production of opium, and eagerly demanded the abolition of the tobacco seedling tax. However, when the new warlords came to power, not only did they fail to repeal it, but they also incorporated it into the land tax, collecting it based on cultivated acreage. This move provoked widespread anger among farmers and drew condemnation from all sectors of society.

The CPC Xianyou County Committee decided to seize this favorable opportunity to launch an anti-tax struggle, focusing on the Dongxiang area where cadre and mass support was relatively strong. Wang Yujie, the organization committee member of the county committee, set up a “Tobacco Seedling Tax Liquidation Committee” at Baxia Primary School as the command body. He gathered party members and activists from the Dongxiang branch to go deep into the communities to mobilize the masses. In late April 1928, taking advantage of a temple fair and theatrical performance in the village, Wang Yujie stepped onto the stage to expose the warlord government’s oppressive collection of the tobacco seedling tax and its exploitation of impoverished farmers. Like a stone thrown into water, this stirred up thousands of long-suffering poor villagers, who responded en masse. Led by Wang Yujie, they surged to Baxia Street, destroyed the tax collection office, dragged out the tax contractor Chen Kunsheng, and paraded him through the streets wearing a tall paper hat. The storm in Baxia quickly spread to other areas. Villages across Dongxiang sprang into action, denouncing the tax contractors and settling accounts over the tobacco seedling tax payments. On May 4, Huang Jinxiu, a young teacher at Zhuzhuang Primary School, and Zheng Zhen, a Communist Party member, led the masses in confronting the tax contractor Fan Zhifu. Separately, Zhang Hongfei, the tax collector in Wangcuo Village, was also dragged to the Octagonal Tower on Jinshi Mountain for public denunciation. On May 9, Zheng Zhen led students and farmers to bring the tax contractor Qing Biao from Houcuo in Bangtou to the front of Baxia Primary School for public denunciation. Soon after, the widely hated tax contractor Wang Hui was executed...

Within just a few days, the anti-tax struggle among Dongxiang farmers grew wave upon wave, and farmers in the western, northern, and southern districts of Xianyou County also took action. The county committee seized the occasion of commemorating “National Humiliation Day on May 9” to mobilize unified action among middle schools in the urban area. A mass rally was held in Yanchipu Square in the county seat, where participants strongly demanded that the government authorities abolish the tobacco seedling tax. After the rally, an organized procession marched through the streets. When the procession passed by the residence of Wang Zhigang, head of the Tobacco Seedling Tax Bureau, angry crowds threw stones and damaged his house. As the procession surged into the county government building, County Magistrate Huang Shangyuan fled through the back door. The massive public resistance against the tobacco seedling tax directly threatened the vital interests of the government authorities and local warlords. Consequently, Warlord Lin Shouguo resorted to violent suppression. On May 10, he sent troops to carry out a “rural pacification” campaign, secretly executing the young teacher Huang Jinxiu on charges of being a “communist,” and issuing arrest warrants for Chen Guozhu, secretary of the CPC Xianyou County Committee, as well as Communist Party members Wang Yujie, Zheng Zhen, Chen Bo, and others. Amid the turmoil, leaders and key members of the CPC and Communist Youth League organizations in Xianyou County were forced to disperse and go into hiding, shifting to difficult underground struggles.

The Former Site of the Anti-Tobacco Seedling Tax Struggle in Dongxiang is a rural temple fair theater stage. In 2010, it was expanded into Xiangshan Village Theater Stage, measuring 14.8 meters in length, 10.5 meters in width, and 1.3 meters in height.

Source: Party History Research Office of Putian Municipal Committee

Bangtou Town: Covering an area of 138 square kilometers, Bangtou Town has a population of 130,000 and 39 village (residential) committees. The town features flat terrain, convenient transportation, with the Xianbang and Laibang highways running through it, and the Mulan River and Xianshui River flowing across the area. With nearly 30,000 mu of arable land, the town entered the ranks of the first group of billion-yuan towns in the province in 1984, earning the provincial government’s title of “The Flower of Township Enterprises.” In 1991, it was awarded the title of “Star Township” by the provincial Party committee and government. In 1993, it joined the ranks of the “Top 100 Townships” in the province. In 1995, it was designated as a pilot site for small-town construction by the Ministry of Construction. In 1996, it was... [More detailed information about Bangtou Town]++