Villages call time on lavish banquets
Birthdays, new houses, weddings, funerals — every occasion was once an opportunity for a huge banquet, a time for China’s rural residents to show off their wealth and save face.
In Malu, a village with a population of 2,000 in Hunan province, firecrackers worth at least 3 million yuan ($477,000) were set off every year before 2017. Most were used to celebrate weddings, funerals, births or graduations.
“Several truckloads of firecrackers were lit each time, and the roads were blanketed with red wrappers,” said Wang Liangyuan, the village head.
Similar scenes could be seen in nearby Dafu township. Colorful balloon arches were often used as decorations for banquets. One resident, Zhou Yan, recalled walking through 80 such arches at a feast.
“The cost for each arch is 100 yuan a day, and they are just for decoration,” she said. “The banquets, though abundant in dishes, were more or less the same. We didn’t have the appetite for the same food over and over again, and half of the food would end up in trash bins.”
The grand celebrations finally came to an end last year, when the Malu village committee proposed frugality for banquets during Spring Festival. The advice gained wide support, and just days later it was confirmed as a village regulation.
“Almost all celebrations, except for weddings and funerals, were banned. Even birthday banquets are only allowed for residents over 60,” said Xiao Yexun, an official in nearby Xiaoyao.
The regulation also ordered a cap of 100 yuan per person for cash gifts and the number of tables at each banquet should be kept under 20. Firecrackers and balloon arches have also become history.
“No one has violated the regulation so far,” Xiao said.
Nearby areas quickly followed suit, much to the relief of Li Shizhong, a resident of Xinqiao. In 2015, he attended 100 banquets and gave gifts of more than 20,000 yuan, almost double his annual income. Last year, he spent less than 2,000.
“Everyone hated the old tradition of extravagance but was reluctant to reject an invitation,” Xiao said.
To recoup their money, residents had to take advantage of every excuse to hold banquets. Some even moved their birthday celebrations from summer to hold them during Spring Festival, when people working outside the village would return home.
The new trend of simple, frugal celebrations has been extensively advocated. Villagers have found new hobbies to fill their spare time.
Malu resident Wang Shuangfeng has joined a square dance team and opera group, and practices every week. “We split the bill when we dine out. We are even closer than before,” she said.
Liu Peiyuan, another Xinqiao resident, has joined the village volunteer association, which looks after security and sanitation and offers help to impoverished families.