Modern Economics & Management Forum

The Chinese rural development can be divided into 3 periods: control under People’s Commune (1949-1984), implementation of household responsibility system (1985-2005), and abolition of agricultural tax (2006-present). Throughout these periods, peasants are always oppressed under rigid policies on agriculture and trapped in the lowest socioeconomic status. Taxation and policy restrictions made living on only farming impossible, forcing peasants into cities, where they become migrant workers, a low-income workforce fueling labor-intensive industries. They continue to suffer from the widening gap of income and public services between them and city dwellers. Though they have made significant contribution to both rural and urban construction, their hard work and sacrifice were not rewarded nor recognized. Bearing the labels of poverty and backwardness, they become the victims of China’s economic boom.