Page 7 - C.A.L.L. #33 - Winter 2010/2011

In the early years, communes proved to be an economic disaster; they contributed to the
deaths of millions of people through starvation between 1958-61. They were finally
abandoned in the early 1980s as villagers began to farm their own plots of land.
But a handful of communes - like the one in Nanjie - stayed as they were.
Wang Hongbin, the village's Communist Party secretary, said it had been the people
themselves who had not wanted to disband the commune.
"They chose to have collective ownership. And if people want it, we - the party - have a
responsibility to carry on with this system," he said.

Struggle to pay

In Nanjie, workers continue to toil for low wages, but in return are provided for in other
ways by the commune. "I earn about 400 yuan a month ($59; £37), but get very good welfare
benefits," said Mrs Hu, who works as a quality control inspector in the village condiment
factory. "I get free medical care and housing - even gas, water and electricity are free."
Her son, nine-year-old Wang Haoyuan, also gets free education in the commune's schools. The
collective will even pay for him to go to university. It is this kind of security that makes life
in Nanjie commune so attractive.
When China embarked on economic reforms in 1978, many benefits, particularly for China's
farmers, disappeared. They can now sell their own crops for profit, but some still struggle to
pay school fees for their children or medical bills when they are sick.
Tens of millions of farmers have decided they cannot
make ends meet and have left their villages to seek work
in China's booming cities.

Uncertain future

Villagers who live near the Nanjie commune look on with
envy at those inside.
One woman, surnamed Liu, said: "Living in Nanjie is so
good - everything is supplied by the village. Although their Commune worker Hu Xinhe gets a
salaries are low, they don't have to worry about other range of benefits
things.
"Our village doesn't give us many benefits, and I can't
survive by farming alone."
Nanjie collective does have its critics, some of whom point out that it is not as communist as
it makes out.
They claim the commune is in debt and does not treat its outside workers as well as it does
permanent residents. They also point out that it tries to trade on its communist credentials
by encouraging tourists to visit.
There is a special hotel for visitors where workers wear military-style uniforms, presumably
to reinforce the village's revolutionary history.
But while the commune may have its flaws, the people who live here say they genuinely believe
in its aims.
At a time when the wealth gap between rich and poor is rising in China and life is uncertain
for many, Nanjie offers the security and certainty of a bygone era.

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