Source:

01-13-2006 17:56

Suzhou is a historical city in Jiangsu Province in China's south. The elegant classical gardens in the city have earned it a worldwide reputation as a heaven on earth. Suzhou is also the main site of China's textile industry, but as China adjusted its industrial structure many textile factories closed down, and many workers were laid off. Leng Zhihua and his wife were among those who lost their jobs. Once unemployed, housing was out of reach for this family. From 1993 to 2003, more than 16 million workers were laid off. Social welfare for urban residents in the lowest income group grew to be a pressing problem for the Chinese government.

As the gap between the rich and the poor widened, establishing a social welfare system for urban residents in the lowest income bracket became an urgent concern. In April 2001, Shanghai launched a pilot low-rent housing programme. The houses are owned by the local government and only rented to people with low incomes. The pilot program is still searching for a better way to allocate housing among the poor. How to define and classify the lowest income group? How to avoid new slum areas forming in low-rent housing areas? There are many problems that still need to be resolved, but Leng Zhihua's family have only praise for the programme.

In traditional Chinese culture, moving house is regarded as an important event. Many aspects need to be taken into account. The most auspicious date should be selected, and the new house is chosen according to its fengshui, where geography influences the fortunes of the house's inhabitants. To Leng Zhihua, it has a much more significant meaning. It was the realization of the whole family's dreams. Low-rent housing relieved a lot of his anxiety over being laid off.

The low-rent housing program is different from welfare housing distribution: those who live there cannot stay permanently. Once residents' incomes reach a certain level they must leave so that others can use the accommodation. In the sense, Leng Zhihua's anxiety was only temporarily relieved. The final solution rests on two bases. Economic growth must be maintained and the social welfare system must be perfected.

 

Editor:Wang Ping