1931년 중국의 ‘복합재난’과 남경국민정부(南京國民政府)의 대응 - 무한(武漢) 대수재를 중심으로 - = China's 'complex disaster' and the response of the Nanjing Nationalist Government in 1931

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The subject of this paper was to study how the Nanjing government perceived disaster relief policy after the 1931 Wuhan Flood. We also studied how to evaluate the government's aid policy.
Massive flooding in 1931 resulted in massive deaths, causing enormous damage to urban and rural areas around the Yangtze River. After the flood, agriculture in China fell, and the economic crisis led to a decline in agricultural prices. In addition to this, Japan invaded Manchuria, and the 1931 flood developed into a 'complex disaster' for China.
The mission of the modern nation is to protect the safety and life of the people. The Nanjing government was also aware of this mission. However, theoretically and institutionally, the mission of the modern state was defined, but in actual circumstances, this mission was partially fulfilled, revealing distinct limitations.
The Nanjing government leaders recognized the suppression of communist and political and social stability as the most important issues, and flood relief was a secondary issue. With this recognition, humanistic relief policies could not be expected. This perception of government leaders was revealed in the aid policy.
The Nanjing government's flood relief has widened the gap between urban and rural, poor and rich. The post-flood rural crisis destroyed the foundations of the urban economy and affected other economic sectors, continuing to put China's economy in crisis. The construction of the embankment, which was successfully carried out through labor relief, revealed a loophole when the embankment collapsed again in a 1935 flood.
The Nanjing Government boasted efficient and productive relief against flooding, but it was difficult to find humanistic measures to ensure refugee safety and life stability. During the 1931 Wuhan Flood, the Nanjing government's control of refugees aroused distrust in the refugee state and even eliminated the impact of humanitarian aid attempted by the Nanjing government. The leaders of Nanjing government, including Chiang Kai-shek, were not fully aware that the country's most basic mission was to protect the survival and safety of its people.