Norwegian Extraterritoriality in China A study of how and why Norway abolished its extraterritoriality in China. HIS 350 Jens Tepstad Master Thesis in History Department of Archeology, History, Cultural- and Religious Studies University of Bergen November 2015 His 350 Jens Tepstad i Preface One of the issues that comes to mind when mentioning "Sino-Norwegian relations" today, is the recent disagreement between the two countries regarding the granting of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize to the Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo. China reacted by holding the Norwegian government responsible for the Peace Price Committee's decision to award the price to an individual the Chinese government deemed to be both a criminal and a troublemaker. Norway is however, far from the only country that have criticized the Chinese government on humanitarian grounds. The United States has continuously pressed for a halt in the Chinese government’s practice of arresting activists, limiting religious practices within the country and blocking access to websites deemed inappropriate. However, it is not only in recent times that the West has considered its own principles to be universally applicable and attempted to impose them on non-Western countries like China. Nearly two centuries ago normative disagreements led to foreign states enjoying "extraterritoriality” in China over a period of roughly one hundred years. Even though Norway was not characterized neither by colonialism nor imperialism, it was still one of the states that attained extraterritoriality for its citizens in China. After exploring the issues surrounding foreign extraterritoriality in China, I decided that this was the topic I wanted to investigate in my master thesis. This topic is exciting and important for two reasons. Firstly, Norwegian extraterritoriality in China is a topic to which not much academic attention has been devoted. Secondly, the scholars who have researched extraterritoriality have primarily focused on the relationship between the Western great powers and China; and mainly on the relations between Great Britain and China. This makes it interesting to explore how a small nation like Norway positioned itself in these affairs. Hence I decided to study the Norwegian participation in the abolition-process that ultimately ended Norwegian extraterritoriality in China. I want to express my thanks to all who have helped and supported me in my study. First and foremost I would like to thank my supervisor Camilla Brautaset for her commitment and guidance throughout the whole process. I would also like to express my gratitude to His 350 Jens Tepstad ii Christhard Hoffmann and all the others in the seminar “På tvers av grenser” (Across international borders) who have provided me with helpful and constructive criticism throughout the writing process. I will also express my sincere gratitude to all who have helped me by proofreading my text. And finally I would like to express my sincere thanks to the project: “Merchants and Missionaries” for a scholarship, in addition to important support for my work. This is a project that researches Norwegian encounters with China in a transnational perspective, 1890–1937, which is hosted by the Department of AHKR and funded by the Norwegian Research Council (Project Number 205553). His 350 Jens Tepstad iii Table of Contents Norwegian Extraterritoriality in China .............................................................................................. i Preface .............................................................................................................................................. ii Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ iv The International Landscape in East Asia during the Early 1920s ................................................ viii Chapter I ........................................................................................................................................... 1 Thesis Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The Topic ............................................................................................................................... 1 1.2 Research Question and Methodological Framework ........................................................... 6 1.2.1 Delimitation of Time ...................................................................................................... 7 1.2.2 Clarifications Regarding the Terms used in this Research ............................................. 8 1.2.3 Clarifications on old Colonial names of Asian Cites and Countries ............................... 9 1.3 Literature and Research Status ............................................................................................. 9 1.3.1 Specialist Studies Regarding Extraterritoriality ........................................................... 10 1.3.2 Research Literature on China and the Wider World ................................................... 13 1.3.3 Studies of the History of Norwegian Diplomacy and Foreign Policy ........................... 14 1.4. Approaching the Sources .................................................................................................... 15 1.5 Primary Sources ................................................................................................................... 16 1.5.1 Who were the Norwegian diplomats that wrote these letters? ................................. 18 1.5.2 Diplomatic Correspondence as Primary Sources ......................................................... 21 1.5.3 Newspapers as Primary Sources .................................................................................. 23 1.5.4 Unused Sources ............................................................................................................ 24 1.6 Thesis Structure ................................................................................................................... 25 Chapter II ........................................................................................................................................ 26 Five Contexts for Norwegian Extraterritoriality ............................................................................. 26 2.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 26 2.2 The Most Favored Nation Agreement................................................................................. 26 2.3 The Norwegian Neutrality Policy ......................................................................................... 28 His 350 Jens Tepstad iv 2.4 The Qing dynasty’s encounter with International Society .................................................. 31 2.5 The Political Situation in China after the fall of the Qing .................................................... 32 2.5.1 The Era of the Warlords ............................................................................................... 33 2.6 The Washington Naval Conference and Its Outcome ......................................................... 35 Chapter III ....................................................................................................................................... 39 Responses to the Washington Naval Conference .......................................................................... 39 3.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 39 3.2 Different views on Extraterritoriality in China .................................................................... 40 3.3 The Norwegian Diplomats’ Responses to the Resolution ................................................... 41 3.3.1 “The Standard of Civilization” ...................................................................................... 43 3.3.2 The Response from the Norwegian diplomats ............................................................ 44 3.3.3 No Guarantee for Basic Rights ..................................................................................... 47 3.3.4 An Inefficient Bureaucracy ........................................................................................... 48 3.3.5 Adherence to International Law and an Effective Legal System ................................. 50 3.3.6 The Maintenance of Diplomatic Relations................................................................... 52 3.3.7 The Compliance with Western Norms and Values ...................................................... 54 3.4 Chapter Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 55 Chapter IV ....................................................................................................................................... 56 The Potential Adherence to the Eight-Power Resolution .............................................................. 56 4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 56 4.2 Opening Remarks ................................................................................................................ 57 4.3 The Norwegian Status Seeking ...........................................................................................