CHENGDU, China--On the third anniversary on May 12 of an earthquake in Sichuan that left close to 90,000 people either dead or missing, what used to be a massive corn field on the western edge of the Sichuan basin has been transformed into a new community of about 30,000.
CHENGDU, China--On the third anniversary on May 12 of an earthquake in Sichuan that left close to 90,000 people either dead or missing, what used to be a massive corn field on the western edge of the Sichuan basin has been transformed into a new community of about 30,000.
Today, high-rise condominiums line the residential district. There is also an industrial development zone where 33 companies are scheduled to set up shop.
A shopping center is designed in the traditional architecture of the Qiang people.
The Chinese government invested about 11 billion yuan (about 132 billion yen or $1.6 billion) to construct a new town for about 12,000 residents of Qushan in the Beichuan Qiang autonomous county that was devastated by the magnitude-8.0 earthquake. Officials proudly point to what they call the great results, but the residents who lost their homes, jobs and farms might not agree.
Chinese President Hu Jintao named the new community "Yongchang," which means a village that will prosper for eternity.
The cost of a condominium was 600 yuan per square meter if the entire floor space of the unit was less than 90 square meters. That is about 40 percent of the construction cost.
Xie Shouju, 34, moved into a condo with four family members. A doctor, Xie works at a new hospital.
"This is like a dream when I think that three years ago we were living in a tent," Xie said. "I am grateful to the government."
Under order by Hu to complete the reconstruction in two to three years, Sichuan province finished rebuilding 5 million homes as well as constructing new housing for quake victims in two years.
Wei Hong, vice governor of the Sichuan provincial people's government, said, "This is a great result and nothing short of a miracle."
What made the rapid rebuilding possible was the concentrated investment over a three-year period of 865.8 billion yuan, which represents eight times the annual budget of the entire province.
High-ranking officials of the central government who inspected Qushan immediately after the quake were stunned at the devastation and decided that the entire town had to be moved elsewhere.
One week later, officials began the process of selecting a candidate site for the move. The authorities expropriated the land from about 10,000 landowners in about two months.
The central government also rushed construction of housing and the rebuilding of toppled schools and concentrated resources in constructing social infrastructure as a means of rebuilding the local economy.
Nineteen provincial and metropolitan governments that were fiscally stable were made to compete for support measures to help rebuild the disaster-stricken areas.
Premier Wen Jiabao said of the effort, "We were able to demonstrate the advantages of the socialist system."
Strong-armed tactics were involved in the process.
About 20 farmers forced to give up their land for construction of the new community at Yongchang protested what they called unfair compensation, but the central government ignored their pleas.
Wen visited the disaster-stricken areas May 9 and said, "The road toward development and rebuilding of this region is long. In addition to homes, we also have to provide a better life."
His reasoning is the persistent concerns raised by disaster victims about their future.
In the Jiulong community of Mianyang in central Sichuan province, an hour's drive over a rough mountain road from the hamlet where housing for disaster victims stands leads one to a small coal mine. About 50 farmers who lost their land due to the earthquake are being trained to work as miners.
"I want to repay my loan as soon as possible to escape the pressure," said Wu Jiaguo, 48. A landslide triggered by the quake destroyed his home and about 20 ares of farmland.
While the housing built for disaster victims is much less expensive than normal, it is still a major financial burden for farmers. Wu has accumulated about 60,000 yuan in debt for his new home and furnishings.
The few jobs available in the local region at plants manufacturing Chinese alcoholic beverages and tiles have been taken by younger people.
When the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) worked with the municipal government to begin a training program at the coal mine, Wu jumped at the chance. He stands to earn a monthly salary of 2,000 yuan if he is hired.
"I realize there are dangers to the job, but there was no reason for me to hesitate when I thought about the difficulties of not having any income," Wu said.
According to the IFRC, about 2 million disaster victims lost their jobs due to the quake. About half of that number were farmers.
Many went into debt to pay for the housing built for victims and the IFRC said recovering means by which those individuals can make a living was the most important issue.
The Chinese government decided that it would be difficult to help all disaster victims with government money. About 45 million people were affected by the quake.
The government's position was to push development and economic promotion of the affected regions in order to stimulate revitalization through the efforts of the local communities.
The rebuilding strategy can be described as one that incorporated market principles, but there were also measures that lacked a long-term perspective.
For example, Wenchuan county in the Aba Tibet-Qiang Autonomous Prefecture turned the devastated town of Yingxiu into a disaster park with about 1.8 billion yuan invested through support from Guangdong province and is now trying to lure tourists.
Zhang Tongrong, the county head, said, "Jobs were created for about 2,800 people, or about 90 percent of the working population of the town."
However, a reporter for a local newspaper said, "How many people really want to come here to look at the aftermath of a natural disaster? The true test will come from now when people's interest begins to wane."
Lin Ling, a professor at the Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences, said, "While the results of the rebuilding process should be highly praised, what was constructed was only the foundations for living and development. There will be a need to implement measures with a view toward 10 to 20 years in the future in order to create stability in the lives of the people."