The head of state elected by all people, two hundred years ago Chinese people established a republic in Southeast Asia

Few people in China today know that in the 18th and 19th centuries, a modern Chinese republic once existed in Southeast Asia — the Lanfang Republic, which lasted for 110 years.

The Lanfang Republic was a Chinese state that existed on the South Seas island of Borneo (now known as Kalimantan and part of Indonesia) between 1770 (the 42nd year of the Qing Qianlong Emperor's reign) and 1885. It was founded by Luo Fangbo from Meizhou, Guangdong Province. It was later destroyed by the Dutch.