Shanghai Municipal Council
In reply to the demand that the Chinese should be represented on the Council the following resolution was passed by the Municipal Council: "That this meeting approves of the creation of a Chinese Advisory Committee and that the constitution and powers of such a committee be limited to those set forth in the letter from the Chairman of the Council, to the Senior Consul dated October 24th, 1919, and published in the Municipal Gazette of January 8th, 1920."
The constitution of the committee referred to was "that it should have a membership of five, to be nominated annually by the Chinese, that the nomination be subject to the veto of the Consular Body, that the nominees reside in the Settlement for five years immediately preceding nomination, that they should have paid General Municipal rates during the whole of this period on an assessed rental of not less than Tls. 1,200 per annum, that they shall not, at the time of nomination or whilst on the membership of the Committee, hold any other office under the Chinese Government."
Mr. E. S. Little proposed the following amendment: "That the meeting hereby instructs the Council to take such steps as are necessary to procure the alteration of the Land Regulations for the purpose of increasing the number of Councillors from 9 to 12, of which three shall be Chinese Ratepayers, with the same qualifications as Foreign Councillors, and to be elected as may be subsequently determined." This amendment was lost by a majority of about three-to-one.
The Chinese were not happy with the measure but they accepted it for the time being. Later that year, a Chinese Ratepayers Association was formed to elect the Advisory Committee. The Municipal Council at first refused to accept this method of appointing the Advisory Committee, arguing that the Chinese Ratepayers Association might try to exercise control over those they elected, and Chinese Advisory Committee did not begin to function until May llth, 1921.
unless otherwise indicated