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Life Onboard |
LAST UPDATE
July 19, 2005
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| July 24, 2004 |
International Student Report - Jing
Jing Bian –
China In My Eyes |
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| Jing Jing Bian shows a map of China during her presentation |
Moving from a small city in central China to attend University in Beijing, Jing Jing Bian, an International
Scholarship Student onboard Peace Boat, has been witness to two conflicting sides of life in China
- rich and poor. Currently these sides are growing further apart, resulting in many poor people from
the country migrating to the rich cities to find work. Because of this, the problem of overcrowding
in cities like Beijing and Shanghai is is growing. Another concern is the lack of adequate education
available to children in migrant families. "Students from poor families - from other provinces,
come to Beijing to get jobs," said Jing Jing. However, she emphasized that, "it is hard
for them to go to public schools because the cost is too high, so many are unable to attend school
at all." |
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| Shaking hands with participants after discussion |
Today there are over 1.1 billion people living in China, and South Eastern China is full of large
rich cities. But to the west (where the bulk of Chinaís population lives) the people living
in the country are very poor. The reason for the income gap stems partly from political corruption,
said Jing Jing, but the main reason is the 1978 economic policy changes that created a more capitalist
system in China.
She explained that Northeast China was also affected by this policy. "In the past, this
area of China also had industries, but after the policy in 1978 many, many, changes happened." Now,
she said these places are becoming poorer and poorer. The 1978 policy changes also opened China
up to the emergence of foreign companies and enterprises. Consequently, these foreign investors
now control much of Chinaís resources and many Chinese industries, particularly in rural
China, have been unable to survive. Jing Jing explained that one problem with developing a more
open system is that the government is the misappropriation of funds. Instead of spending the
money in rural areas on development and education the money is being used to build high-rise
offices and luxury hotels in the cities. Jing Jing believes this money needs to be spent in
rural areas, to foster development in the economy and education. |
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Discussing her own education growing up, Jing Jing feels she was given an adequate education,
but that Chinese education in poor areas can improve as the country develops. In high school Jing
Jing scored well on examinations and out of curiosity began studying additionally outside of school. "I
was from a poor family - the environment around me was very poor - and many people that lived around
me lived hard lives. So when I was in high school I began to realize that society, or the social
affairs, in my area were bad. Then I began to read books on society and world history. I also borrowed
books from the city library to learn more about the world."
To change these problems Jing Jing said she wanted to be a mayor in her city, but now, because
of the political corruption in China, she has become discouraged. She feels that one reason corrupt
politicians remain in power is because of the lack of information provided to the people. "Every
year people in China can vote for public officers in their area. But as far as I can see, it is
to hard for them to get the truth."
While continuing her studies at the University, to help with this problem, Jing Jing became a
volunteer teacher in an unused room in Beijing. She explained that seeing the hardship of the children
caused her sadness, but she spoke very highly of her experiences, and said in a soft-spoken tone, "I
will never forget that period of time."
Jing Jing stressed that even with the political corruption and poverty facing China, she loves
her country and her life in Beijing. "I still believe that China will get better because so many people are
beginning to realize the problems and solve them." Focusing on the positive, Jing Jing ended her
presentation by reciting the first sentence of Chinaís national song, "Stand up people who
donít want to be slapped," and expressed optimism for her country by saying, "I believe
Chinaís future will be greater and greater." |
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