Chinese volunteers soldier on in quake aftermath
By Lucy Hornby
MUYU, China, May 25 (Reuters) - When he heard about the destruction wreaked by the earthquake, Pu Wenjie loaded his car with bread and simple dry food and drove 800 km (500 miles) to Muyu Town in Sichuan Province.
When he got back home, he vowed to return, this time with a caravan of cars from Xiangfan, a mid-sized city in neighbouring Hubei Province.
Nearly two weeks after the Sichuan earthquake, committed ordinary Chinese, Buddhist temples, non-government organizations and informal networks of friends are dodging government restrictions and red tape to ferry supplies to the survivors.
Their work supplements the massive effort by the Chinese army and government to keep 5 million people fed, housed and healthy.
"They need so much. Sanitary supplies, towels. They haven't bathed since the earthquake," Pu said. "And they are sick of instant noodles. One woman told me she had diarrhoea from them. We need to bring fruit, vegetables, and oranges."
The May 12 quake stunned the 1.3 billion Chinese population, which had been riding a wave euphoria just months before the Olympic Games in Beijing. Ordinary Chinese have donated billions of yuan and many have joined relief efforts.
Within hours of the news, volunteers throughout Sichuan and China loaded cars with water and food, and charged into the quake zone to try to help. More followed with clothing and quilts.
A few days later, the government urged volunteers to stay home. Some had proven more willing than useful, while the tide of cars clogging the roads blocked access for the emergency vehicles and army rescuers.
China is now channelling donations to the Red Cross, while local radio stations urged volunteers to "show their support by working hard at your normal jobs".
Police checkpoints this week strictly limited entry to the disaster area to the army, official and emergency vehicles, and journalists, although some restrictions have softened as the initial crisis passed.
The government estimates that the final death toll from the quake could exceed 80,000, making it the worst natural disaster to hit the vast country in three decades.
CIVIC ORGANISATIONS
The army has set up tent cities across much of Sichuan, where it delivers food and water to depots for surrounding villagers to collect. Its efforts are supported by work units across China, who have sent a flow of donated goods and labour to centralised supply depots.
But many homeless people are living on the bare minimum, and gratefully accept any food offered by passers-by.
Civic organisations, as well as unaffiliated volunteers like Pu, are finding their way back into the disaster zone to supplement the army's efforts and catch the people who have fallen through the cracks.
"We affiliated ourselves with the Red Cross. It only took us an extra day to get the paperwork worked out and get back in again," said a monk delivering fresh vegetables to a rubble-strewn town near Chengdu.
His efforts were appreciated.
"The army has been good to us, but these 'getihu' have also done a tremendous job," said a woman watching from her tent. She used term that refers to the early entrepreneurs who cracked open China's "iron ricebowl" of state guaranteed welfare and jobs in the 1980s.
Like those entrepreneurs, the quake volunteers could help open the door to a stronger civil society in China, where the government and party still view independent organisations with suspicion.
"This is quite an extraordinary time," said Wenran Jiang, a political scientist at the University of Alberta, who sees the development of civil society in China as a process.
"It has brought out the best because the government and media are open. People see the truth and mobilise themselves."
On the road to Qingchuan, on the fault line about 200 km (125 miles) from the quake's epicentre, banners strung from tents and ruined houses variously thank the Chinese Communist Party, the People's Liberation Army, and "the whole people". Children stand by the road loudly cheering when any vehicle drives by.
Pu intends to drive this road many times, since his plan is to adopt the town of Muyu, where about 500 schoolchildren died.
"Every victim is Chinese, so there is no need to dash all around. We can serve one place where they need it." (Editing by Jeremy Laurence and Alex Richardson)
MUYU, China, May 25 (Reuters) - When he heard about the destruction wreaked by the earthquake, Pu Wenjie loaded his car with bread and simple dry food and drove 800 km (500 miles) to Muyu Town in Sichuan Province.
When he got back home, he vowed to return, this time with a caravan of cars from Xiangfan, a mid-sized city in neighbouring Hubei Province.
Nearly two weeks after the Sichuan earthquake, committed ordinary Chinese, Buddhist temples, non-government organizations and informal networks of friends are dodging government restrictions and red tape to ferry supplies to the survivors.
Their work supplements the massive effort by the Chinese army and government to keep 5 million people fed, housed and healthy.
"They need so much. Sanitary supplies, towels. They haven't bathed since the earthquake," Pu said. "And they are sick of instant noodles. One woman told me she had diarrhoea from them. We need to bring fruit, vegetables, and oranges."
The May 12 quake stunned the 1.3 billion Chinese population, which had been riding a wave euphoria just months before the Olympic Games in Beijing. Ordinary Chinese have donated billions of yuan and many have joined relief efforts.
Within hours of the news, volunteers throughout Sichuan and China loaded cars with water and food, and charged into the quake zone to try to help. More followed with clothing and quilts.
A few days later, the government urged volunteers to stay home. Some had proven more willing than useful, while the tide of cars clogging the roads blocked access for the emergency vehicles and army rescuers.
China is now channelling donations to the Red Cross, while local radio stations urged volunteers to "show their support by working hard at your normal jobs".
Police checkpoints this week strictly limited entry to the disaster area to the army, official and emergency vehicles, and journalists, although some restrictions have softened as the initial crisis passed.
The government estimates that the final death toll from the quake could exceed 80,000, making it the worst natural disaster to hit the vast country in three decades.
CIVIC ORGANISATIONS
The army has set up tent cities across much of Sichuan, where it delivers food and water to depots for surrounding villagers to collect. Its efforts are supported by work units across China, who have sent a flow of donated goods and labour to centralised supply depots.
But many homeless people are living on the bare minimum, and gratefully accept any food offered by passers-by.
Civic organisations, as well as unaffiliated volunteers like Pu, are finding their way back into the disaster zone to supplement the army's efforts and catch the people who have fallen through the cracks.
"We affiliated ourselves with the Red Cross. It only took us an extra day to get the paperwork worked out and get back in again," said a monk delivering fresh vegetables to a rubble-strewn town near Chengdu.
His efforts were appreciated.
"The army has been good to us, but these 'getihu' have also done a tremendous job," said a woman watching from her tent. She used term that refers to the early entrepreneurs who cracked open China's "iron ricebowl" of state guaranteed welfare and jobs in the 1980s.
Like those entrepreneurs, the quake volunteers could help open the door to a stronger civil society in China, where the government and party still view independent organisations with suspicion.
"This is quite an extraordinary time," said Wenran Jiang, a political scientist at the University of Alberta, who sees the development of civil society in China as a process.
"It has brought out the best because the government and media are open. People see the truth and mobilise themselves."
On the road to Qingchuan, on the fault line about 200 km (125 miles) from the quake's epicentre, banners strung from tents and ruined houses variously thank the Chinese Communist Party, the People's Liberation Army, and "the whole people". Children stand by the road loudly cheering when any vehicle drives by.
Pu intends to drive this road many times, since his plan is to adopt the town of Muyu, where about 500 schoolchildren died.
"Every victim is Chinese, so there is no need to dash all around. We can serve one place where they need it." (Editing by Jeremy Laurence and Alex Richardson)
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