On Social Guarantee Of Disabled Soldiers During Republic Of China

The source of social guarantee of the disabled soldiers can be traced back to the Pre-Qin Period.Before the Ming Dynasty, there was not a specific guarantee standard for the disabled soldiers. There was neither difference of the disabled degree nor of the treatment to the disabled soldiers. During the early Qing Dynasty, the guarantee treatment to the disabled soldiers was mainly made according to their disabled degrees and military glories. In the late Qing Dynasty, although old and new rules and laws co-existed, a more specific division of the soldiers’ disabled degrees emerged. Meanwhile, the identification of the disabled is more scientific, and great attentions were attached to the long period life of the disabled soldiers. There were active helping measures to the disabled in China’s traditional society. These measures began to change during China’s open to the world of the late Qing Dynasty,from the disabled soldiers’ skill learning to give them special education to inspiring their potential and promoting their abilities. All of these changes can be found in the system and practice of social guarantee of the disabled soldiers during Republic of China. Contemporary European countries and USA guaranteed livings and rights of disabled soldiers through material support, rehabilitation and employment, and right guarantee. The practice of these countries showed new guarantee ideas and measures to both government and people of Republic of China and made them want to imitate them.Special care and well arrangement were main contents of social guarantee of disabled soldiers in Republic of China. Special care covered both material and spirit levels. As for comfort and compensation to the disabled soldiers, the administration had specific divisions charged for different work. The standard of judging the disabled was enlarged step by step. The treatment standard was mainly made according to military rank then to the disabled degrees. Although the pension standard was increased many times, it was hardly helpful when compared with inflation; disabled soldiers could not support themselves with their pensions. The little pension was often paid with delay and deduction regardless of the ever regulated pension payment system. Talking about well treatment, the merits of disabled soldiers were awarded, they were often visited and rewarded by government and social societies, they and their families were privileged to favorable treatment like fee exemptions. All these measures comforted and encouraged soldiers to some extent, but did not actually promoted social status of disabled soldiers.Accommodation and employment were important measures to arrange disabled soldiers by governments of Republic of China. The government established education-support houses to accommodate disabled soldiers and educate them, meanwhile imbued them with political ideas, taught them knowledge and working skills, as well as regulated their behaviors. Disabled soldiers were arranged by the government mainly in two ways. First, organize them to produce as a whole. Second,encourage them to be employed. After the break of Anti-Japanese War, the government established institutions and published rules and laws to set up the employment system of disabled soldiers. Arrange them to be employed before the war, and spread all over the government controlled area after the break of the war. After the war, settlement of disabled soldiers in government controlled area was in a jam gradually due to various reasons. There were many problems in this settlement work which resulted in serious consequences.The arrangement of disabled soldiers in the government controlled area gained the support from social powers. The social media gave great attachment to the arrangement work. They thought that the arrangement not only can meet the individual needs of disabled soldiers, but also a responsibility of government and duty of society, Moreover, it was a must of the war and even the construction of the state. The Media also discussed about the specific way of arrangement, such as promoting qualities and arranging them as a whole. Before the war, the support and help to the disabled soldiers from social institutions had already existed. During the war, the specific institutions for the disabled soldiers emerged from those social institutions. These specific institutions offered vocational training,introduced jobs, and settled arrangement communities, which did a great contribution to disabled soldiers. Furthermore, the disabled soldiers organized themselves to set up self-govern communities and seek welfare.In the revolutionary base areas, the CPC offered social welfare to disabled soldiers with support from people. During the agrarian revolution period, the army systems coordinated with government departments, a disabled soldiers’ social guarantee system consisted of comfort, well treatment, care and arrangement. During the anti-Japanese War, CPC coordinated comfort with arrangement tensely;instructed disabled soldiers to develop production and support themselves. During the war of liberation,CPC combined social guarantee of disabled soldiers with needs of the war, called on disabled soldiers to go on to serve the revolution. The liberated areas set up schools for disabled soldiers to promote their political awareness and organized them to acquire knowledge. As for those disable soldiers who were able to work, the military department arranged them to work according to their abilities. As for those disabled soldiers who were at the back, the liberated areas encouraged them to produce, improve their life in the meantime make every penny count support the front.During the period of Republic of China, the social security of disabled soldiers had changed from the imperial power bestowing into the government responsibility and social obligation, and the government, social organizations and the public participated in it. The goal of security has been promoted from satisfying basic survival needs to realizing self value and the safeguard measures has also converted from singleness to diversification. Compared with the European and American countries in the same era, during the period of the Republic of China, the social security of disabled soldiers still existed some differences in the aspect of the security ideas and security level. The social security of disabled soldiers in revolutionary base areas is obviously better than Kuomintang-controlled areas,which is closely related to the mobilization ability, organization ability, political culture and policy executive ability of the Communist Party and the Kuomintang. The historical track of the social security of disabled soldiers during the period of the Republic of China provides a beneficial reference for the implementation of the social security of disabled soldiers today and the development of theundertakings of the disabled.