Chinese Lives

Now this month, June of the Chinese traditional calendar , is the hottest and busiest month for Chinese farmers. In South China countryside, which i know a little, farmers often leave home and start harvesting rice plants at 4 am when it is the coolest time of a day. Between 12pm and 3 pm, the temperature inside rice paddy can rise up to 50 Celsius Degrees after hours direct sunlight, when farmers have to stay home and rest. After 3 pm, they work again till late night.
Harvesting rice and planting new rice shoots for autume harvest, make Chinese Calendar June a hell month, because delaying harvest will cause ripe crops to rot in field, and delaying rice planting till autumn, will not secure a good harvest. That is to say, farmers have to finish planting before 7th August.

Source: http://cache.tianya.cn/publicforum/content/free/1/1390180.shtml

A newest policy says that from 2008, China will select 100,000 Uni graduates to work in rural China, which to some extent will ease tightening pressure that huge number university graduates put on city job markets each year.

Though rural origin graduates are not put in a must-apply situation, this policy do help them to find a secure social servant job and erase their uni loans, if they agree to serve three years.

No one wants to go in rural China. Not even students from countryside. Most parents expect children to work in Beijing state government in their best wish; if not available, they want university, bank, big state-owned corporations, or foreign companies. Certainly, working with farmers, is the last thing in parents’ plans. That is a reality that delays rural economy.

With too many university graduates, and too few city job vacancies, directing job seeker to rural China, couldn’t be a very bad idea. When more university graduates fit in, they will want to claim more rights and benefits on things such as less education fee, nationwide medical insurance, pension scheme if necessary etc.

I personall think thumb up of this policy. Because rural China’s benefit become a part of our business, when a lot of gradates have to live it for 3 years or probably longer. People in rural China are not ignored any more if this project goes well.

Relatives on my mother’s side mainly stay in countryside, where used to be poor. In my memory, it was muddy and gray when I stayed at my grandparents’ for New Year. At then, 80% farmers lived on agricultural crops.

Things changed in last 20 years. Majority of young labor of farming force seek jobs in construction, sewing and restaurant industry etc and leave the old and small behind. They usually come back when it is the Chinese New Year, with a year’s earning, which will be children’s school fee, parents’ living expense and savings for future.

Anyway, happiness shows on their faces at least at this happiest moments of a whole year before they return to strange cities. Good luck, my fellow Chinese.