Three Principles of the People

The Three Principles of the People（Traditional Chinese:三民主義 Simplified Chinese:三民主义 Pinyin:sān mín zhǔ yì ）is a democratic revolutionary program proposed by Sun Yat-sen, the father of China.

Principles of Nationalism

Oppose the feudal dictatorship of the Qing Dynasty and the aggression of the Great Powers, defeat the warlords in collusion with imperialism, seek the equality of all nationalities in China, and recognize the right of national self-determination.

Principles of Democracy

The people have four powers to elect, dismiss, create, and review the government, while the government has five powers to govern the country: legislative, judicial, executive, examination, and inspection. The core concept emphasizes the distinction between direct civil power and power, that is, the government has the power to govern and the people have the power.

Principles of People's Livelihood

Two of its most important principles were equalization of land rights and restraint of capital (private individuals could not manipulate the livelihood of the nation).

Evaluation

The Three Principles of the People is in fact the summary and high summary of Sun Yat-sen's series of thoughts and practical experiences in saving the nation from peril and exploring the modernization of China, which, after being elevated to theory, played a very important role in guiding and promoting the revolutionary actions of Sun Yat-sen himself and his followers. The Three People's Principles are the spiritual heritage of the Chinese people and the great force that inspired the Chinese people to revive China. But it has its inevitable limitations of the times.