Never Fear Poverty, and Happy Life Comes from Hard Work
A farmer works in the Sichuan pepper industrial park in the Yihai Village. The Yihai Village in Mianning County, the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province in southwest China, which is also called JiemengXinzhai (literally, “Alliance-Signing New Village”) has got rid of poverty with the targeted pairing-assistance of the PLA Strategic Support Force (PLASSF) starting from October 2016. (PLA Daily/Liu Keyue)
In Yihai Village, the reporters found that several young people who quit their jobs in big cities and came back to the village to dedicate themselves to local development. Jike Ajimo , a teacher in the kindergarten of the Jiemeng Xinzhai, is one of them.
“When talking with villagers and poverty alleviation work team members in the Sanhe Village, President Xi pointed out that education must keep pace with economic development, and we should never have our children fall behind at the starting line,” said Jike Ajimo. “The army has not only helped us build the kindergarten but also provided free lunch for children, set up scholarships for students and bonuese for teachers. We have no reason not to make contributions to the development of our hometown.”
“Though the pay here is lower than in cities, we’re rewarded with a greater sense of fulfillment.” Jike Ajimo is happy to see that children in the kindergarten are growing up with each passing day.
Among the returned young people is Mao Jinquan, who was admitted to the Party not long ago. In 2016, Mao graduated from Jinling Institute of Technology (JIT) in Nanjing and then got a well-paid job at a state-owned enterprise in Kunming. Before the 2018 Spring Festival, Mao returned to the Yihai Village to become a village cadre.
After returning to the Yihai Village, Mao worked together with members of the PLASSF poverty alleviation working team. They visited poor families and discussed with villagers to find ways to increase their incomes. He carefully studied the Party’s policy on poverty alleviation and “translated” it into language understandable to ordinary Yi people.
“Thanks to the assistance from the government and army, the Party’s preferential policies have resulted in tangible achievements in poverty alleviation. We all witness the changes of our villages.” Through tireless efforts, Mao has convinced more and more vi llagers that poverty isn’t terrifying and happy life comes from hard work.
“Today, the local people are rolling up their sleeves to work hard for a well-off life,” said Yu Xiaoping, a member of the PLASSF poverty alleviation working team. “As a military officer from the Yi ethnic group, I’ ll express my heartfelt gratitude to the Party when seeing my fellow people lead a life that is getting better and better.”
Military-Civilian Amity Has Become Deeper Today
“When you arrived, the river flew across the hazy cliff. Seeing the kindness in your eyes, I opened the castle of my heart to welcome your army…” The moving ballad reverberated in the air as the reporters stood under the thriving Red Army Tree to overlook Jiemeng Xinzhai with a strong Yi flavor.
The story of the Red Army signing an alliance with the Yi tribe in Yihai is considered a glorious page in the history of the Red Army’s Long March by setting a good example for national solidarity and military-civilian amity. Over decades, the PLA has never forgotten the remarkable contributions made by the Yi people to the Chinese revolution. In the special battle against poverty, the PLASSF work shoulder to shoulder with the people of Yihai Village. Through hard work, they have changed not only the look of the village but also the mentality and spirit of local people.
“When the military and the civilians unite as one, they can defeat any difficulties.” Roaming around the new, vigorous village of Yihai, the reporters believe that as long as we maintain close military-government and military-civilian relations, there will be no difficulties which cannot be overcome and no goals cannot be achieved.
