The Democratic League of China (DLC) is a part of the patriotic united front under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, and one of the participating parties closely cooperating with the Chinese Communist Party. The members of the League are mainly senior and intermediate intellectuals engaged in education or science and technology. The DLC has the characteristics of a political alliance, and is committed to the cause of socialism. Its predecessor was the Comrades Association for National Unity and Construction, which was established in November 1939. The Democratic League of China was set up secretly on 19 March 1941 in Chongqing as the Democratic Political Parties League in China, and Huang Yanpei was recommended as the chairman of its central committee. After Huang Yanpei went abroad, Zhang Lan was chosen as the chairman. In October of the same year, Bright Newspaper was published in Hong Kong, carrying the League’s founding declaration and its Ten Principles. In September of 1944, the Democratic Political Parties League in China held its National Congress in Chongqing, where it was decided to change its name to Democratic League of China, and to require personal applications for membership. The highest organ of DLC leadership is the National Congress and the Central Committee elected by the Congress. The previous chairmen of the DLC Central Committee are Huang Yanpei, Zhang Lan, Shen Junru, Yang Mingxuan, Shi Liang, Hu Yuzhi (acting chairman), Chu Tunan, Fei Xiaotong, and Ding Shisun. In December of 2005, Jiang Shusheng was elected as the chairman of the League. The publications of the DLC’s central organ include Message of the DLC Central Committee and the monthly periodical Public Opinion, which is published both in China and abroad.
