| Abstract |
During the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945), the capital of China was relocated from Nanjing to the interior city of Chongqing. As a result, huge numbers of people came streaming into the wartime capital. To provide these dislocated people with the help and support that they needed, numerous relief groups and aid agencies emerged, many of them dedicated to the care of women. But while there have been a number of studies done on female relief groups supported by the government, there has been a lack of research into semi-official or civilian female support groups. This study aims to redress the balance. Among the questions it asks are the following: whether non-government aid groups were able to provide help more quickly and with more flexibility than government relief organizations; whether the government tried in any way to control or limit the activities of nongovernmental female aid agencies; and whether these non-government groups were able to distribute resources effectively to those that needed them most. This study pays particular attention to the Chongqing Women Welfare Society, an organization established by the Kuomintang (KMT), but which sought after its creation to operate independently of the KMT. By paying more attention to the Chongqing Women Welfare Society, we are better able to see how China responded to a society that was on the verge of collapse. As we study this response, we are also able to see more clearly how the nation responded to its enormous problems in the aftermath of the war. |
