Picking tomatoes
Society for Anglo-Chinese Understanding – SACU News
The Society for Anglo-Chinese Understanding is a friendship association of people in Britain toward China. It was founded on May 15, 1965, and in its early years it was sympathetic to the Chinese Revolution and socialism. Its early leaders included Dr. Joseph Needham and Professor Joan Robinson (who were both also involved, at the same time, with the China Policy Study Group).
The abrupt ending of the SACU News monthly magazine coincides with the start of the publication of China Now – copies of which we have not be able to access.
As SACU followed a very much ‘pro-China’ line during the course of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution the wishy-washy liberals, who had joined in the early years, drifted away only to return to take control of the organisation when the Chinese ‘capitalist-roaders’ took the country away from the construction of Socialism and towards the full scale restoration of capitalism.
The organisation still exists but seems to function more as a mouthpiece of the Chinese government in Britain and providing its members with official visits to capitalist China.
In the 1970s SACU was criticised for publicising the revolutionary, Socialist, developments of the People’s Republic of China when the country was attempting to improve the conditions for the vast majority of the population. Now it praises the erstwhile Socialist country for its capitalist (and imperialist) development.
SACU News – Monthly Publication
1965
Vol. 1, No. 1 – October 1965, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 2 – November 1965, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 3 – December 1965, 4 pages
1966
Vol. 1, No. 4 – January 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 5 – February 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 6 – March 1966
Vol. 1, No. 7 – April 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 8 – May 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 9 – June-July 1966, 8 pages
Vol. 1, No. 10 – August 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 11 – September 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 12 – October 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 13 – November 1966, 4 pages
Vol. 1, No. 14 – December 1966, 4 pages
1967
Vol. 2, No. 1 – January 1967, 4 pages
Vol. 2, No. 2 – February 1967, 4 pages
Vol. 2, No. 3 – March 1967, 4 pages
Vol. 2, No. 4 – April 1967, 4 pages
Vol. 2, No. 5 – May 1967, 4 pages
Vol. 2, No. 6 – June 1967, 8 pages
Vol. 2, No. 7/8 – July-August 1967, 8 pages
Vol. 2, No. 9-10 – September-October 1967, 8 pages
Vol. 2, No. 11 – November 1967, 8 pages
Vol. 2, No. 12 – December 1967, 8 pages
1968
Vol. 3, No. 1 – January 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 2 – February 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 3 – March 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 4 – April 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 5 – May 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 6/7 – June-July 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 8 – August 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 9/10 – September-October 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 11 – November 1968, 8 pages
Vol. 3, No. 12 – December 1968, 8 pages
1969
Vol. 4, No. 1 – January 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 2 – February 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 3 – March 1969
Vol. 4, No. 4/5 – April-May 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 6 – June 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 7 – July 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 8 – August 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 9/10 – September-October 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 11 – November 1969, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 12 – December 1969, 8 pages
1970
Vol. 4, No. 13 – January 1970, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 14 – February 1970, 8 pages
Vol. 4, No. 15 – March 1970 [Last issue], 8 pages