Handle With Care
China's secret destitute millions
After a decade of policy and economic reforms, China is increasingly becoming a world power to be reckoned with. Shanghai bears all the hallmarks of a city of the future, full of hi-tech businesses, bright lights and new developments. But a visit to China’s more remote rural provinces tells a different story.
A nine-hour train journey from Beijing takes us to Shenyang, in the far North East. Here, hundreds of state-owned factories have closed, leaving their workers penniless. We drive down the “Avenue of Losses” in a rundown, post-industrial suburb of Shenyang, past deserted factories forced to close due to bankruptcy. People here are unbelievably poor. One woman tells of how a family of three committed suicide in desperation. The Chinese authorities are desperate to keep the plight of these people under wraps; 70-year-old Zhou Wei spent two years in a labour camp for daring to speak out against government corruption. Parts of China may well be reaping the benefits of entry into the mainstream global economy, but others continue to pay the price.
A report by Jonathon Miller for Unreported World.
Produced by Mentorn
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