China's competition for living space | DW Documentary
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Published 2021-05-30
But the right to live in a city in China is conditional. Authorities want their modern cities to be peopled with well-educated, highly-qualified or politically well-connected residents. As a result, certain standards have to be met to be eligible for a modern, urban home. Only members of China's political classes and the financially successful have a hope of qualifying. Yet more than half of the people who live in cities are so-called "migrant workers." They come from rural communities and have no official rights to settle in cities. They are there to work. With no proper rights, they are merely tolerated while they serve as merchants, servants, waitstaff, cleaners, construction workers and tradespeople. But while they are indispensable to daily life in the cities, they are unable to afford their exorbitant rents. This documentary looks at how and where these workers live, and asks whether middle and working class Chinese even figure in the official vision of shiny, high-tech cities. The filmmakers also look at what happens to those who oppose official plans, or stand in the way of the building boom.
#documentary #China #cities
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All Comments (21)
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I feel so sorry for the lady that killed herself. You could see the pain in her eyes.
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Being rich is now a NECESSITY to survive, not just a PRIVILEGE.
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DW always tells the story from the perspective of the people; that's why their documentaries are so great. Thanks DW!
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Funnily enough, the incentives that created the urban villages in cities like Shenzhen produced a city scape curiously similar to that of Ancient Rome 2000 years ago. That first metropolis had insulae apartments 7-8 stories tall hanging over narrow streets dominating much of the working class sector of the city, just like what we see today. Ancient sources even talk about the poor quality of the housing, the lack of light reaching the roads, the constant reek of waste, and the lack of amenities being characteristic of these spaces. Things really haven’t changed
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if you're evicting 20 families to build apartments for hundreds... the least fortunate thing you can do is to let those families rent the new apartments for the same rent cost.. like come on...
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My dude Li had balls of steel. Fighting alone against this regime takes balls. I hope he got a good compensation and lives happily with his family
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the situation is sad ...but this man is true warrior .I am so happy his fight had a good result .People like him are real role models.
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This was hard to watch.. my heart sank when they said that woman committed suicide the next day..
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This broke me. I cant even imagine having my home taken away from me like this. And that woman who didn't know how to read or write. Extremely saddening.
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As Chinese, well, i believe the story happened 10 years ago. Recent years, people in city villages are eager to move out, this mean they will get huge compensation and at least 3-4 departments per family, it is the common story how to become rich shortly. Lets see everything with updated eyes.
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I'm very grateful for YT and all the documentaries such as this. I need to be aware of what goes on beyond this small town in Nebraska where I live.
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The last guy went out like a f*cking G. He was ready to put it all on the line. Gotta respect that. RIP to the lady that took her life, should have taken some of those bastards with you.
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THE MAN WHO FOUGHT FOR DEATH IN THE NAIL HOUSE WITH BOMBS AND SHIT IS A REAL G ...
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Thank you for making this documentary. This documentary is very heart-wrenching. I'm very shocked and touched by watching this documentary. There should be an organization to help people living in these conditions.
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my heart goes out to all those displaced people, as a person who is couch-surfing myself due to unaffordable housing in the bay area I can understand how depressing it is not to have security, thank god I'm not dragging kids along with me and making them suffer for my inability to make enough money to live here.
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Li Qizhong is an absolute warrior. bless his brave soul fighting back. Also RIP to that poor woman its horrible how nonchalant they make it seem that they are just jumping off buildings as they get their homes taken right from under them.
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Heartbroken for the woman who committed suicide 💔 May God bless her soul
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The documentary sheds light on the challenges faced by migrant workers in China's booming cities. It's a poignant exploration of urbanization and the struggle for housing rights. Thank you for bringing attention to this important issue.
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My heart bleeds for that woman, how can the world be so cruel to the poor, I can imagine want she went through, with Chinese one child policy, I'm sure she was the only one maybe left, taking her plot without any compensation really devastated her life, may God have mercy on her soul 😭😭😭
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Fun Fact: I live in New York City and this happens here too. I live next to a building that has been partially demolished except that one resident refuses to move. Developers have been caught many times using illegal practices to remove rent controlled tenants to make room for expensive developments.
