4256 x 2831 px | 36 x 24 cm | 14,2 x 9,4 inches | 300dpi
Data acquisizione:
26 maggio 2011
Ubicazione:
Near Dongfeng park, Beijing, China
Altre informazioni:
Questa immagine potrebbe avere delle imperfezioni perché è storica o di reportage.
Beijing, near Dongfenk park. Behind an area of new apartments, next to the Dongfeng park, there is a small village with cottages; a so called “chengxiangjiehebu” (village in a city). The area originally was a cemetery in the late Qing dynasty. At that time, the people who lived here were guarding the graves. With the foundation of the Peoples Republic, the land was turned into farmland for growing vegetables and crops. When we walk through the streets in this area, we see many gambling rooms. We stop by a group of men playing cards. They play a very serious game with high stakes. The men are descendants from people from Jiangxi province who came to Beijing several generations ago when there was a shortage of fresh meat in Beijing. The Jiangxi traders set-up a business for slaughter and sales of meat, providing Beijing citizens with the needed supply of fresh meat. During those days, many of the men gambled and played card games during the day, while at night they slaughtered and ran their meat business. A government ruling in 1994 ended the slaughter business; as of then individuals were not allowed to slaughter livestock anymore. Many of the Jiangxi people stayed in the area after the ruling and are still active in trading meat. Residents in the area do not expect that the village has to make way for development projects any time soon. The land is worth a lot of money and it would cost the government too much money to buy the land and relocate the residents. The living conditions in the area are simple, but the rent is high. The owner of the gambling room pays 800 Yuan per month. With his child at an age to enter school soon, the high rent is a burden for him.
