Kuomintang

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v \- t \- e

The Kuomintang (國民黨, KMT)also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP)(中國國民黨) is Taiwan's conservative, Chinese nationalist, (21st century standard) pro-PRC party. Before losing the Chinese Civil War to the Communist Party, they were the ruling party of Mainland China.

As the current main opposition party, it is inclined to confront the center-left Democratic Progressive Party.

## History[edit]

The party's founder was Sun Yat-sen born 12 November 1866 – 12 March 1925, Yat-sen was a Chinese, physician, and political philosopher, considered a founding father in both mainland China and Taiwan. Originally it rose to prominence as the driving force behind the Xinhai Revolution, which overthrow the ruling Qing dynasty, and ended the two thousand year old imperial tradition and established the Republic of China (ROC).

The KMT's power faded somewhat as strongman Yuan Shikai became a dictator, but re-emerged when Shikai attempted to reinstate the monarchy with himself as Emperor, an attempt that ended in utter failure. After Shikai's downfall, China fragmented into what was known as the Warlord Era, in which various strongmen controlled portions of the country. The KMT would maintain their own government based in Guangzhou (Canton), slowly building a power base.

In 1925, Sun Yat-sen died and power would eventually fall to the head of the KMT's military academy, Chiang Kai-Shek. Chiang would soon lead the Northern Expedition which defeated the warlords and establish the KMT as the legitimate government of China.

In its early years, the KMT was mainly a Republican movement, accepting help from all sources, including generous help from the Soviet Union. However Chiang Kai-shek grew increasingly authoritarian and right wing, eventually purging leftists from the KMT. This, along with other splits, would lead to the Chinese Civil War. Despite generous help from the US, and a grudging alliance with the Chinese Communist Party to fight the Japanese during World War II, the KMT would eventually be defeated by the CCP.

In 1949, having lost every stronghold in mainland China, the KMT fled to the island of Taiwan, taking with them China's gold reserves and numerous art treasures. Chiang Kai-shek would, to his dying day, insist that he was preparing to re-invade the mainland and defeat the Communists. It was under this rationale that he would keep Taiwan under martial law and a war footing until his death.

## Political position[edit]

Following the death of Chiang Ching Kuo (Chiang Kai-shek's son) the first Taiwan born president Lee Teng Hui took leadership of the Kuomintang. Under Lee, the process of Taiwanisation took place, with an increasing focus on Taiwan and less on Pan-China. The KMT gradually ended its one-party dictatorship in Taiwan and carried out democratization, while greatly softening its anti-communist tendencies.

On the other hand, the Democratic Progressive Party, a liberal party founded by pro-democracy activists in Taiwan at the time, was a pro-Western party based on Taiwanese nationalism against the Chinese nationalism advocated by the KMT, so after Taiwan's democratization, the DPP took an anti-communist position. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), in particular, is now politically supportive of the KMT as it feels very much against the DPP's push for Taiwanese independence.

The Chinese Communist Party, which is currently located in mainland China, abhors the Democratic Progressive Party, and is quite friendly to the KMT.

The KMT is a pro-PRC party, but it does not support communism. The KMT advocates the unification of Taiwan and mainland China, but calls for the PRC to democratize as a precondition.

## See also[edit]

* Chiang Kai-shek