Research On Drought And Relief In Shanxi Province From 1928 To 1929

Shanxi is a region where suffered natural disasters frequently in history,especially since the establishment of Republic of China.Among these disasters,Drought was the worst one.The drought in Shanxi Province was quite active in modern times.In 1928-1929,shanxi suffered from severe drought,which was one of the most serious disasters in modern times。Statistically,the total number of people affected by the drought reached 6.017 million in 84 counties.This drought was the result of both natural factors and social ones.It was characterized by wide area,long duration and enormous impact,and it had a profound impact on the political,economic and social development of Shanxi as well.The government and social organizations carried out relief after this drought.In the process of relief,the government mainly adopted traditional strategy while the social groups introduced new methods,which played different roles and complement each other.Due to the imperfect relief system,insufficient funds and slow action from the government,the relief had not reached the expected effect.Social organizations mainly included China International Famine Relief Commission and the Red Cross,etc.These charitable organizations carried forward humanitarian spirit in the drought relief,and adopted new methods to make up for the lack of government relief.But the government relief still took major portion while equipping with the social force relief as supplement.The relief from the government and social forces alleviated social conflicts,which also maintained social stability after the drought.The innovation of post-disaster relief measures had a positive impact on the modernization transformation,which integrated new ideas.The relief from 1928 to 1929 enriches and improves the relief methods,and still has reference significance for us to deal with natural disasters as well as the relief system and mechanism today.