China News Service, Guangzhou, November 5 (Reporter Guo Jun Zhang Lu) The themed event "Sun Yat-sen and the United Front Story Sharing Meeting - Commemorating the 160th Anniversary of the Birth of Dr. Sun Yat-sen" was held in Guangzhou on the 4th. At the meeting, representatives of Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s relatives, descendants, experts, scholars and cultural workers shared stories to review the great man’s legacy and discuss the spiritual inheritance.
Sun Weiyong, the great-great-grandson of Sun Mei and Hong Kong’s representative to the National People’s Congress, said that Mr. Sun Yat-sen was particularly good at uniting all forces and bringing together different groups and forces under the banner of “revitalizing China”.
He mentioned that in his early years in Honolulu, Mr. Sun Yat-sen relied on overseas Chinese; later he established the Revive China Association and the Tongmenghui, and he united various forces such as academia, business circles, the Party, and the New Army; in 1924, when the Kuomintang first came to power, he determined the three major policies of "alliance with Russia, alliance with the Communist Party, and support for agriculture and industry" to promote cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party.
"He does not unite people for personal power and position, but unites people for the future of the country. As long as it is beneficial to the country and the nation, he is willing to fight for and cooperate." Sun Weiyong believes that this character of seeking common ground while reserving differences and building consensus is an important manifestation of the spirit of the united front and the broad side of Mr. Sun Yat-sen's patriotic sentiments.
"Mr. Sun Yat-sen is an important spiritual link that connects the emotions of the Chinese people and communicates the family ties across the Taiwan Straits. It is the common spiritual banner of the Chinese people at home and abroad." Sun Weiyong said that no matter where you are, as long as you talk about Dr. Sun Yat-sen and the revitalization of China, everyone has a common language, common feelings and common expectations.
Zhang Jinchao, researcher and deputy director of the Institute of History and Sun Yat-sen of the Guangdong Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out that Sun Yat-sen was the forerunner of the United Front, and the lineage of his allies went through a tortuous route from "overseas Chinese, the Party, and the New Army" to the "Southwestern Warlords" and then to "Soviet Russia, the Communist Party of China, and the workers and peasants." The end point of this route was the three major policies of "alliance with Russia, the Communist Party, and assistance to farmers and workers" and the New Three People's Principles, which was also the highest point of Sun Yat-sen's united front thought.
"Although he did not use the concept of 'united front' in his theoretical exposition, his thoughts on alliance, unity, and reliance on allies are clear and systematic. He can be called an outstanding representative of the united front thought of China's bourgeois revolutionary democrats, and his unfinished business will be inherited and developed by the Chinese Communists." Zhang Jinchao said.
Li Shengxi, deputy director of the Sun Yat-sen Former Residence Memorial Hall, introduced the achievements of the memorial hall in cultural relics protection, academic research and cultural exchanges at home and abroad over the past 70 years based on the context of "one person, one hall, one tree and one flower". Among them, the story of "tree" and "flower" is the most praiseworthy. "One Tree" is the sour tree that Dr. Sun Yat-sen brought seeds from Honolulu in 1883 and planted it in the courtyard of his former residence. It is now a national first-class ancient and valuable tree. On Arbor Day in 2026, Sun Yali, Sun Yat-sen's great-niece, carefully framed the seeds of the sour tree and presented them across the Taiwan Strait to Zheng Liwen, Chairman of the Chinese Kuomintang. In July of the same year, three seedlings were settled at the Penang Base Memorial Hall in Malaysia, the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Penang, and the Sun Yat-sen Perak Museum in Ipoh.
"We have also donated seedlings to Guangzhou Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Whampoa Military Academy Former Site Memorial Hall, 1911 Revolution Memorial Hall, Sun Yat-sen University and other institutions, allowing the seeds from Cuiheng to take root and sprout in many places, becoming a unique emotional link connecting compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Strait and overseas Chinese." Li Shengxi said.
"Yihua" is Sun Wenlian, who carries a century-old cross-border friendship. In 1918, during his stay in Japan, Sun Yat-sen gave four lotus seeds from his hometown to his Japanese friend Takashi Tanaka. In 1962, the lotus seeds that had been dormant for decades bloomed and were named "Sun Wenlian". On the 100th anniversary of the lotus donation in 2018, Sun Yat-sen's great-grandson Sun Guoxiong received the "Sun Wenlian" lotus root from Mr. Kaneko Akio in Japan and asked someone to bring it back to Cuiheng Village, the great man's hometown. After eight years of careful cultivation, this year on the occasion of the 160th anniversary of the birth of Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Sun Wenlian bloomed for the first time in front of the former residence, attracting widespread attention. Overseas Chinese, young people from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan read the centuries-old story in the lotus fragrance and understood Sun Yat-sen's fraternity.
"From the sour tree in front of the courtyard of his former residence to the first bloom of Sun Wenlian in front of the door, they bear witness to Mr. Sun Yat-sen's lifelong pursuit of national unification and national rejuvenation. It also reflects the common admiration and remembrance of this great man by Chinese people at home and abroad." Li Shengxi said that he will continue to make good use of these vivid cultural symbols to tell the story of Zhongshan and China well, and continue to expand the concentric circles.
In addition, An Dongqiang, professor of the Department of History at Sun Yat-sen University, and Cao Xia, curator of the 1911 Revolution Memorial Hall, etc., respectively started from the historical details of Sun Yat-sen's interactions with Chen Duxiu and Li Dazhao on the eve of the first cooperation between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party, as well as historical materials such as batches of overseas Chinese workers in Canada and letters from overseas Chinese leaders in Nanyang, to confirm the historical truth that "overseas Chinese are the mother of the revolution."
Sun Yat-sen's devotion to the cause of democratic revolution was inseparable from the silent support of his family for decades. Sun Bisheng, 88 years old this year, is the great-grandson of Sun Yat-sen's eldest brother Sun Mei. He has settled in Zhongshan since 2004 and compiled family historical materials. He mentioned in his sharing that Sun Yat-sen founded the Xingzhong Society in Honolulu in 1894. Sun Mei relied on her extensive contacts to mobilize and contact overseas Chinese to raise funds. Later, she even sold the ranch she had been running for half her life.
"Sun Mei lived a poor life in his later years, which was very different from his situation in Honolulu, but he never regretted it and firmly believed that the future of the country is higher than personal gains and losses." Sun Bisheng said that as a descendant of the Sun family, looking back on this past event, he felt a lot of emotion, "Zhongshan Mr. Sun and his brothers Sun Mei are united in their dedication to the country. Now the vision of revitalizing China has become a reality step by step. In commemorating Sun Yat-sen, we must not only learn from his indomitable spirit of serving the world, but also remember the behind-the-scenes heroes like Sun Mei." (over)
