From homeless vagrants to victims suffering flood disasters,
millions of the needy in China are enjoying?various gatherings
on the eve of the
Spring Festival, the Chinese lunar New Year.
Under government care, the needy have received donations either
in cash or in food and clothes for celebration activities during
the Spring Festival, which falls on January 29.
The Chinese government has launched a series of charity programs
across the country, aiming at "bringing warmth and love" to the
needy in holidays.
From Saturday morning, farmers of Pingnan County in south
China's
Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the worst-hit area of
flooding last summer, have been busy preparing the big family
dinner.
Amid cracks of fireworks, laughter burst out among happy crowds
in the rural area, who thanked the government?for helping them
in home rebuilding.
Governments at all levels made full efforts after the flooding,
which affected 7 million people and destroyed 43,000 houses in a
dozen of counties in Guangxi.
Under the government's disaster-relief efforts, people in the
flood-hit areas have received abundant clothes for winter and cash
donation for home reconstruction. In Dahetun Village, 300 homeless
villagers moved into new houses only three months after the
disaster.
"The donations were really a timely help because I lost
everything in the flooding," said Zhou Jingfang, a 79-year old
farmer in Zhendong Village who was busy preparing for the
festival.
The government's "bringing warmth and love" program also favors
the children and adults wandering in cities, helping them return
home for family gathering and providing them with free food and
shelters during the festival.
In Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province,
rescue centers have received hundreds of homeless people who need
food and shelter.
In the Luogang District Rescue Center, more than 200 urban
homeless spent the eve of the lunar New Year with a tasty dinner
and comfortable bed in the government shelter.
In June 2003, the Chinese government issued a decree to scrap
all government institutions of custody and repatriation that
collected urban vagrants and homeless on the streets and sent them
home.
Such institutions across the country have been turned into
shelters to provide free food and lodging for the needy. Prior to
the Spring Festival, the government urged all such centers to
ensure that "no homeless person freezes to death on the
streets."
In 2005 alone, rescue centers in Guangzhou helped 28,137
homeless people.
According to rescue center officials, shelter residents were
given a free health check, a shower and clean clothes on arrival.
They ate jiaozi -- filled dumplings traditionally eaten on the
lunar New Year -- and enjoyed the television gala as most Chinese
families did Saturday night.
At the city's homeless children protection shelter, 62 children
even had their own New Year party, playing games and winning
prizes.
"I'm so happy because it's my first Spring Festival with so many
friends together," said Wei Fujiang, an eight-year-old boy in new
sports wear donated by staff.
Hu Guozhi, vice director of the Luogang shelter, said the food
was improved during the Spring Festival with daily allowances
increased, and if anyone wanted to go home after the holiday, the
center would provide a free train ticket.
The Luogang shelter is the largest district rescue center which
is able to house hundreds of homeless children and adults.
Featuring the rescue efforts on the homeless and the needy, the
national charity program usually starts one month earlier than the
Spring Festival, which features family reunion and praying for
peace and harmony.
Launched by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU)
over a dozen years ago, the annual charity program has been
extended by Chinese governments at all levels, aiming to give care
and material support for some 60 million victims struggling in
regions hit by natural disasters every year, 20 million urbanites
on the government's minimum living allowance and 75 million rural
residents in absolute poverty and extremely low income.
More than 240 million yuan (US$30 million) of funds as well as
food, quilts and clothes donated nationwide have been allocated to
over 20 million people last year, according to civil affairs
departments statistics.
The ACFTU, which has 134 million members in 1.7 million primary
trade union organizations, alone appropriated 45 million yuan
(US$5.6million) of charity funds in Spring Festival donation.
(Xinhua News Agency January 29, 2006)