VZCZCXRO4082
RR RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHCN #0218/01 2800924
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 070924Z OCT 09
FM AMCONSUL CHENGDU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3440
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
RUEHCN/AMCONSUL CHENGDU 4134

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 CHENGDU 000218 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/CM 
BANGKOK FOR USAID 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SOCI ECON PGOV CH
SUBJECT: SICHUAN QUAKE RECOVERY: MANY RURAL RESIDENTS STILL LACK 
PERMANENT HOUSING 
 
REF: A) CHENGDU 090, B) CHENGDU 011 
 
CHENGDU 00000218  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Despite official Sichuan Province statistics 
claiming 97 percent of rural home rebuilding following last 
year's earthquake has been completed, a trip to the area in 
mid-September revealed a significant proportion of rural 
residents remain in temporary housing.  Banners proclaiming the 
province's September 30, 2009 deadline for rural home 
reconstruction were a common site, but local residents reported 
that the need to be officially registered as a local household 
and the high costs of rebuilding remain barriers to progress. 
More positively, reconstruction continues apace and we did 
observe a significant reduction in the number of temporary 
shelter complexes compared with previous trips.  Possibly 
reflecting greater skepticism than provincial statisticians, 
however, Premier Wen Jiabao, during a visit to Sichuan quake 
areas in late September, commented that the Province "must still 
overcome challenges before it can be judged a complete success." 
 End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Consul General and PolEconOff traveled on September 10 
to rural areas in Sichuan hit by the May 2008 earthquake, 
including the towns of Hongyan and Zundao, both lying within 
about two hours drive north from downtown Chengdu.  In Hongyan, 
CG participated in the opening ceremony of a livelihood project 
implemented by Heifer International's China office in 
cooperation with the Pengzhou Bureau of Animal Husbandry. 
During the unofficial visit to Zundao, we completed a walking 
tour of the town, speaking to local residents about their 
experience with the reconstruction process and the challenges 
they are facing.  (Note: Travel in the quake area, once off of 
the few multi-lane highways that reach the main cities, remains 
difficult and often unpredictable, with road and bridge 
reconstruction projects often blocking routes, necessitating 
travel along unpaved and narrow roads between county-level 
towns.  End Note.) 
 
Progress, but Many Still Waiting for Housing 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Traveling along the increasingly rough and unpaved 
roads to Hongyan, we noted a reduced number of temporary housing 
complexes in comparison to our visit several months ago (ref A). 
 However, many of the fields of white-walled, blue-roofed 
prefabricated shacks remain, some now topped with new satellite 
dishes.  Large red banners exhorting disaster area residents to 
"enthusiastically" work to meet the province's September 30 
deadline for completion of rural home reconstruction were a 
common site, hanging across roadways and on construction sites. 
(Note: In early May, Sichuan officials announced that all rural 
residents must move into permanent housing by the end of 
September.  End Note.) 
 
¶4. (SBU) In Hongyan, residents living in temporary structures 
built from materials recycled from their destroyed homes, 
estimated that they still had months to go before they would be 
moving into permanent housing.  When asked about the apartment 
complex still under construction nearby, into which many of them 
expect to move, locals noted that while the outer shell could be 
done within weeks, the internal construction will likely not be 
completed until early 2010. 
 
No Hukou, No Rebuilding Subsidies 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) In Zundao, where the quake destroyed about 90 percent 
of the buildings, construction of a number of new private homes 
and public buildings -- such as the new middle school and 
kindergarten -- had been completed since our last visit in 
April.  However, the town still appeared to be a large 
construction site, with the majority of residences in some state 
of reconstruction or repair.  Several residents readily 
recounted the challenges they still face in the recovery 
process.  Within minutes after we entered the town on foot, two 
older residents had separately approached us to complain that 
they were unable to rebuild -- they do not have local household 
registrations (hukous), they said, so local officials denied 
them the reconstruction subsidies available to their neighbors. 
 
Rebuilt Home Brings Heavy Debt Burden 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) A Zundao couple, who recently completed the 
construction of a new two-story family home, invited us into 
their home and recounted to CG the struggles they underwent in 
financing the rebuilding.  Between themselves and the wife's 
parents, they were able to obtain 32,000 RMB (USD 4,700). 
However, they said, rebuilding costs totaled 120,000 RMB (USD 
 
CHENGDU 00000218  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
17,650) -- a figure consistent with what we have heard from many 
other residents in that area.  They filled the gap by drawing 
down the savings they had amassed over the years -- 20,000 RMB 
(USD 2,940) -- along with a small bank loan and a larger loan 
from family members.  They noted that the loans are a "great 
burden" and they do not know how they will repay them, but said 
that they had decided that they must nevertheless rebuild their 
home, otherwise they would have no life.  In their 50s, the 
couple said they now earn several hundred RMB a month from a 
flower pot business run out of their home.  Neither have 
pensions coming -- the husband noted that he had been laid off 
from his factory job in Mianyang (a nearby city) over a decade 
ago, receiving only a one-time payout and losing his retirement 
security in the process. 
 
Official Statistics versus Rural Reality 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Comment: Infrastructure and housing reconstruction 
progress in the quake-affected areas is evident, having shifted 
into high gear early in 2009 (ref A).  However, official 
provincial statistics announcing that 97 percent of rural 
homebuilding has been completed to date do not appear to be 
borne out by reality on the ground.  More remote areas, further 
afield than Hongyan and Zundao and comprising a large portion of 
the quake impact area, are reportedly facing even greater 
rebuilding challenges.  Premier Wen Jiabao paid his eighth visit 
to the quake zone in late September, and commented that the 
effort "must still overcome challenges before it can be judged a 
complete success," -- perhaps also expressing greater skepticism 
than provincial statisticians. 
BROWN