Phan Bội Châu assistance from China, but the country was forced to abandon its suzerain relationship with Vietnam after the 1884–85 Sino-French War. Phan and Cường Để decided to seek aid from Japan, which had recently won a war against Russia, had successfully imposed reforms and seemed more inclined to help out revolutionaries in a nearby Asian country. Phan was selected to visit Japan to secure the funds needed to sustain Duy Tân Hội. Phan did not speak Japanese and had no contacts in Japan, so he sought help from Liang Qichao, who was living in Japan since being exiled years earlier. Liang
Phan Khôi "Tràng An" (1934). In 1956, Phan Khôi led the "Nhân Văn" - "Giai Phẩm" movement in Hanoi, and he served as editor in chief as well as the publisher of the "Nhân Văn" (1956). He also contributed to the "Giai Phẩm" periodical and "Văn", a weekly publication. Some leading Vietnamese intellectuals in the north of the country, like Nguyễn Hữu Đang and Trần Đức Thảo (1917–1993), joined Phan Khoi to express their ideals in the "Nhân Văn - Giai Phẩm" Movement, demanding freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and democracy. They accused the Vietnamese Communist Party of violating the