During the resistance war against Japanese aggression, the Eighth Route Army, one of the major armed forces led by the Communist Party of China (CPC), had set up an undercover office in Hong Kong to guide anti-invasion operations across South China, contributing to the final victory of the arduous fight.
Located at No. 18 Queen's Road Central, the former site of the Eighth Route Army's Hong Kong Office appears much like it did when it was founded in 1938—a regular shop in a bustling area. There was no public sign of the office, but a plaque with characters reading "Yuehua Tea Company". The location was chosen for several reasons: a tea shop could provide cover for their activities and being in a busy area enabled easy access to various visitors. More importantly, the building had a back door for quick evacuation in case of emergencies.
"Hong Kong was a colony back then. Neither the Republic of China government nor the Communist Party could set up an official organization here. So when our Eighth Route Army's Hong Kong Office was established, it was publicly known as the Yuehua Tea Company," Yin Xiaoping, president of Hong Kong East River Column History Research Association, told CCTV.
For the newly established office, the top priority was how to deal with donations that poured in from overseas patriotic Chinese following the Lugou Bridge Incident, which took place on July 7, 1937 and is recognized as the start of Japan's full-scale invasion of China, as well as China's whole-nation resistance against the Japanese invaders.
At that time, under British rule, it was not an easy task to find a bank in Hong Kong willing to handle donations for the CPC.
"After the July 7 Lugou Bridge Incident, many overseas compatriots donated money back to China to support our anti-resistance operations. The Central Committee decided to establish an Eighth Route Army Office in Hong Kong, which served as a financial window for the Party, " said Yin.
According to incomplete statistics, the Hong Kong office received a total of 2.2 million yuan in donations from overseas Chinese in the two and a half years following its establishment, along with a large quantity of supplies for the war. Additionally, the office mobilized and sent many young overseas Chinese and skilled professionals back to China to participate in the fight. Thanks to its efforts, over 600 youths and technicians were introduced and transported to the base areas of Chinese troops behind enemy lines from 1938 to 1939 alone.
"The office developed rapidly here and its functions were strengthened, becoming a key window for external communication. It had made indelible contributions, truly fulfilling the tasks assigned by the Party," Yin said.
The work of the Hong Kong office came to an end in February 1942 when the turning point of the prolonged war came and Chinese army intensified counterattack against Japanese invaders. Three years later, the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression achieved a complete victory.
The war was the longest, largest, and most costly war of national liberation that the Chinese people fought against foreign aggressors in modern history, and it was also the first complete victory won by the Chinese people in their struggle for national liberation.
Wednesday marks the 93rd anniversary of the September 18 Incident in 1931, at which Japanese troops began the bloody invasion of China, foreshadowing World War II and making the country the first to resist fascism.
CPC-led Eighth Route Army HK Office contributes to victory against Japanese aggression
