Society
Farmers feel a sense of loss amid urbanization
By Li Jing (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-06-08 09:18
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HARBIN - Solastalgia is a term coined by the Australian philosopher Glenn Albrecht in 2003 to the emotional distress caused by environmental change to those directly connected to it.
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However, farmers say they too now share this sense of loss after watching the country's urbanization process eat up their farmland. Even large compensation packages have not healed the wounds in some cases.
Liu Jinshan, who has traded 8 mu (0.5 hectares) of land in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, for 2.4 million yuan ($350,000), is not as happy, especially when he sees his once fertile land now covered with weeds.
His land is among a vast area acquired by the city government to construct a new railway station.
"My land was taken by the government about two years ago but they still haven't started any construction," said the 67-year-old. "You'd know my feeling if you had worked as a farmer your whole life."
About five minutes' walk from Liu's village is a cluster of vegetable greenhouses. The plastic sheds have already worn out, while inside mushroom bags are scattered on the ground.
"It's a pity to waste these greenhouses," said the farmer. "Why can't we continue farming until the bulldozers arrive?"
Having lived in the village for 64 years, Liu said he is reluctant to move out and totally cut off his bonds with the land.
"Does the government really need so much land to construct a railway station?" he asked.
"We are sacrificing agriculture, the most important thing, for transportation facilities. What are we going to eat if all the farm lands are taken?
"If I could choose, I'd rather continue farming than getting all that money," he added.