Completed in late 1999 as part of a thesis on Three Gorges population displacement and resettlement by Chinese academic, Dayu Yang, the study illustrates the various problems migrants have endured as a result of the Three Gorges resettlement process problems ranging from unemployment to replacement farmland that is insufficient in size and quality.

According to estimates, between 1.2 and two million people will be displaced by the US$30-billion Three Gorges dam project and the Chinese government has proposed three resettlement strategies to facilitate migrants’ relocation.

The “land for land” strategy proposes replacing land lost to the dam with land of equivalent value, and usually involves resettling migrants in elevated areas in or near to Three Gorges. Mr. Yang says, generally speaking, river valleys tend to offer greater agricultural advantages: relatively even topography, rich fertile soil, convenient transportation and access to water. Whereas uphill areas can be extremely difficult to farm due to a history of overdevelopment and overexploitation. Migrants resettling in uphill areas have had to deal with thin, sometimes infertile soil, a lack of farmland, cooler temperatures, and less convenient access to water and transporation. “How can we earn a living on the slopes?” is the most common concern raised by migrants Mr. Yang interviewed.

Another relocation option is “distance” resettlement, a variation on the land for land strategy which entails sending migrants to other areas, sometimes far away from their homeland. According to Mr. Yang, distance resettlement has produced mixed results and depends largely on whether adequate arrangements have been made beforehand by resettlement officials to provide sufficient farmland. This can be problematic, as under China’s household contract responsibility system, landholder rights are effective for up to 30 to 50 years officials must persuade established residents to give up a portion of their land to migrants. Understandably, residents are reluctant to do so, even refusing to give up their land despite pressure from the government. As a consequence, migrants are often given land that is insufficient in quality or size. Another problem contributing to the overall decline in migrant living standards is that resettlement hosts may spend government funds intended to help reestablish migrants, on themselves.

The other Three Gorges resettlement option is the “country to city” move in this case, the government creates industrial projects or offers existing employers financial incentives to help absorb the incoming rural work force. Mr. Yang found migrants moving from rural to city areas had high- expectations about city living and felt that the move would improve their circumstances. They were not disappointed: migrants’ circumstances improved in terms of housing, transportation, health care facilities, and educational opportunities. For a while, many were employed in factories and businesses but, due to prevailing macroeconomic conditions and problems related to the resettlement operation itself, those employed lost their jobs while others were never given work in the first place. Compared to the urban jobless, rural migrants have a hard time finding reemployment. The general perception is that they lack comparable work skills and experience, and do not enjoy the same social network as urban residents. Sometimes migrants take on risky jobs to support themselves, such as taxi-driving (their vehicles are often in such poor condition they are dangerous), but even here their earning capacity is limited because the market is flooded with taxi-drivers. City living is particularly difficult for older migrants. Said one woman Mr. Yang interviewed, “Without knowledge, without skills, and middle-aged, we cannot do anything but kill time in the city.”

Unfortunately, the government could not anticipate market fluctuations and the national economic situation when planning its resettlement operation, and hard times have caused a number of businesses the government hoped would absorb rural migrants to fail. Others proved unsuitable because they were already in dire straits or there was a lack of development potential to sustain an increased work force.

For the most part, migrants resettling in urban areas have experienced greater difficulty than those resettling closer to home or in rural locations. They also express less hope that they will be able to restore their former standard of living.

Based on the results of China’s past resettlement schemes, the greatest risk associated with involuntary population resettlement is the impoverishment of migrants. Although the Three Gorges resettlement operation is a significant improvement on previous efforts, Mr. Yang says most migrants are worse off. The government appears to view resettlement as a chance for rural peasants to escape poverty: the more likely scenario, however, based on Mr. Yang’s findings, is that migrants become poorer.

Lisa Peryman, Probe International, November 6, 2000

Please see the full study: Three Gorges: resettlement and marginalization.