Chinese People Numb About Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year arrives on January 26, but people are not nearly as excited as they used to be because of the tight economic situation.
Chinese People Numb About Chinese New Year
A toy factory in China closes down. (Getty Images)
1/22/2009
Updated:
10/1/2015
<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/toyfactory.jpg" alt="A toy factory in China closes down. (Getty Images)" title="A toy factory in China closes down. (Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-1831139"/></a>
A toy factory in China closes down. (Getty Images)

The Chinese New Year arrives on January 26, but people are not nearly as excited as they used to be because of the tight economic situation. The high unemployment rate and factory closings have taken away the joy of the Chinese New Year and family reunions.

A member of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) who is in his 60s said, “Though I still live alright, but seeing the total corruption of the CCP and the moralless society, I am emotionally stressed. I sense the crisis and don’t see a way out. I can’t feel the excitement of the New Year. Many news outlets predict there will be many demonstrations and protests this year. When the social conflicts become acute to a critical point, of course they will explode.”

No Money, No Human Rights, No Chinese New Year

A man from northeast China’s Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, told the Epoch Times, “Everyone’s fidgety because there is no money and no human rights. I don’t have money to shop for the New Year celebration and I don’t feel like celebrating it.”

A migrant worker was disabled by a police beating when he worked in Dongguan, Guangdong Province. He told Epoch Times, “Life is hard for the poor. To get through the Chinese New Year is like having to get through the gates of hell. I was too naïve to believe the Dongguan City administration would solve my case of injustice. I have learned a bloody lesson. The CCP is rotten from head to toe. The nature of the CCP is evil but it disguises itself so well. The biggest problem in China is the lack of human rights, including the right to know. People call the CCP ‘communist bandits’ and we all hope for the coming of their doomsday.”

An internet blogger from Chongqing City said that he is renting an apartment that is not equipped with a heating facility. He did not want to turn on his own heater in the cold winter days because he couldn’t afford the electricity bill.

Money Lost in Stock Market and Mutual Funds

An interviewee from southwest China’s Zigong City, Sichuan Province said that no one was glad the New Year is coming because of the economic downturn. “Those in China who have extra cash in hand and don’t run a business, almost all put their money in the stock market or bought mutual funds. Now the stock market plummets followed by the mutual funds, many people lost their hard-earned money. Nearly every household in my neighborhood lost money investing.”

A 56-year-old stock market investor Mr. Tang once made large sum of quick cash when the stock was still skyrocketing. Tang sold his house and business and borrowed money form his relative. He put all the money in stocks expecting the preparation for the Beijing Olympics to push the stocks even higher. Never could he have imagined a market plunge during the Olympics. Tang had lost everything he had and he had no plans for the New Year.

“Now, I even have a problem feeding myself. There are too many others like me who have no work and nothing left,” said Tang.

Another stock investor from Anhui Province said everyone he knew has nearly the same attitude, “I lost in every investment, how could I be in the mood of celebrating the New Year?”

Huge Unemployment Pressure

Liu, a small business owner from Ziyang City, Sichuan Province, said during the interview, “My daughter hasn’t found a job since she graduated from college. She graduated with outstanding grades from a normal college. Nowadays schools only hire when a teacher leaves. Children from privileged families naturally get hired first. No companies are hiring these days. It’s all about having connections if one wants to get a job.”

Sadness in Buying a House

Yang from Chongqing City said he was the only person who paid off his condo in the complex. Some of the money he borrowed from friends. The rest of the residents only paid the down payment with money they borrowed. With the bad economy, they still have to pay for the overpriced house payment.

“The condos in Chongqing are so overpriced because the government sold the land too expensive. The government took all the money and we, though living in big houses, don’t feel too well-off. We don’t feel too excited about the New Year because we still have to figure out how to get by and pay off the money we borrowed for the house,” said Yang.

Read original article in Chinese