More than 1,800 sacrificed to battle poverty
▶ Selected cadres ‘ serve the people, unlike sloganeering Western officials’
More than 1,800 people have sacrificed their lives while fighting on the frontline of China’s battle against poverty over the past eight years, underscoring the country’s targeted efforts to lift 100 million rural people out of poverty since 2012 through the selection of responsible, dedicated and qualified grassroot officials.
To bring poverty- stricken regions out of poverty, since late 2012, China has selected over 500,000 cadres as the first Communist Party of China ( CPC) secretaries of villages and has sent more than 3 million cadres to impoverished villages to battle poverty.
Among the more than 1,800 who sacrificed their lives, the Global Times found there were cadres who insisted on fighting on the frontline despite having long- term fatigue or illness. One young couple fell into water and lost their lives on their way back from a poverty- stricken family in 2018, while many dedicated cadres won respect from villagers and persevered in solving problems for povertystricken families for years.
The topic that more than 1,800 laid down their lives in the fight against poverty garnered nearly 280 million views as of press time on Sina Weibo, with many offering their condolences and expressing respect for those who lost their lives.
They did not mean to be heroes, but shaped their image as heroes with their own lives, some posted online. Some said that the people who shake off poverty and move toward prosperity will not forget them.
To mark China’s accomplishments in poverty eradication, President Xi Jinping will attend a gathering in Beijing Thursday. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, will present awards and certificates to national honorary title recipients for their contributions to the poverty alleviation cause.
Observers noted that the
CPC values the selection of talents and has established an effective system of cadre cultivation, selection, arrangement and management.
The achievement in poverty alleviation could not have been made without the exemplary leadership of cadres who are dedicated, responsible and problem- oriented, said Su Wei, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee. “They are the hard core of the country’s victory in the fight against poverty.”
By the end of 2020, nearly 100 million impoverished rural residents had escaped poverty since the 18th National Congress of the CPC in 2012, and all 832 national- level povertystricken counties had shaken off poverty.
Xi had pledged that all rural poor will shake off poverty to usher in a prosperous society in all respects when the Party celebrates its centenary in 2021.
Wang Guanbo, a young civil servant in a village in North China’s Hebei Province, told the Global Times that helping families shake off poverty is not an easy mission to carry out as it comes with tedious work from day to night, and requires cadres to tackle every single difficulty that local people face. “I visited local families who suffer from poverty. Working overtime is common.”