Research On Social Relief In Qinghai In Modern Times

Social relief is a complex topic,the definition of which varies in different kinds of references.The targeted people are generally divided into two categories.One is group of the old,the weak,the sick and people who get stuck to poverty due to some social reasons.Another kind is the people who suffer from natural disasters and unexpected incidents.In accordance with them,the thesis mainly tackles two aspects which are closely related to normal relief and famine-related relief.Taken as many factors as possible into consideration,like the status quo of social relief in Qinghai province which has a variety of ethnic groups and its unique development along the historical river of China,the thesis is set in the contemporary time.The thesis is developed in the following chapters.First chapter provides an overview on the social relief and the findings in previous studies,which help indicates the necessity of doing so.Besides the government-guided social relief,the thesis also touches upon the diverse formations of relief and charity activities going on among ordinary people because of the blood-bond and the relationship in the concerning local communities.It also helps find out the motivation of the social development under rough situations.Second chapter covers the roles different elements playing in the social relief,which ranges from the natural and humanistic environment to its changing administrative systems.Lying in the northeast of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau,Qinghai has all the features of the typical plateau continental climate such as drying,less rain,windiness,long sunshine,cold and so on,which makes it inevitable for the people to suffer from varied natural disturbance.People here in Qinghai rely mainly on farming and ranching and the political system is to some extent,the result of the combination of religion and politics.With the popularity in various religions,temples and mosques are playing remarkable role both politically and economically.All these elements make the social relief in Qinghai differ greatly from the rest of the country.In the third chapter,the thesis compares and summaries social relief from three aspects:government-directed,non-governmental relief and assistance from other sources like individuals from other countries.The official activities include the set-up of some institutions and the relief in winter times.The free compulsory education and diversified students-aid activities and scholarship projects are also carried out constantly.Non-governmental activities vary in its form and scale.Some get help from the blood-bonded people and people with closer relationships in their local communities.And others like the homeless and the orphans are provided accommodation by some religious organizations.People with different believes from abroad also hold some charitable campaigns to help the needed.The fourth chapter emphasizes on the status quo of the famine-related relief from the same three aspects.As for the government-directed relief,the prevention,reaction during the disaster and the measures taken afterwards are the three main steps with the guidance of institution and a series of administration center.Prevention involves planting more trees and forests,building rivers and lakes,encouraging farming,banning smoke,preparing storages,promoting rare crops and setting up the surveillance institution.And the sanitary institution exert all sorts of steps like the vaccination,sanitary movement,and the dissemination of healthcare concepts.When the unexpected disasters happen,the local government formulates a range of measures to provide the urgent reliet and pestilence treatment.After the disaster,relevant authorities places shelters for victims and refugees,plant the destroyed crops,planning loans,getting the crop market under control,stabilizing grain prices and restoring the production.As far as the nongovernmental relief is concerned,people from other regions and districts might have the stereotype that people in Qinghai are lagging behind both intellectually and spiritually.Actually,the citizens in Qinghai are willing to make every possible effort to get out of straitened circumstances.Some work in teams to offer mutual help,others might utilize indigenous methods to cure pestilence and some even would pray to the gods for more rainfall and hail suppression.What's more,numerous self-employed individuals,religious organizations and some rescuing teams work together in the face of the challenge.And the missionaries and people from other nations also contribute in the process of the rescue and treatment.Chapter five analyses the achievement of the social relief in over 100 years from the late Qing dynasty to ROC(Republic of China).And it gives a clear demonstration on the interaction among the center and local government and society.In the last chapter,the thesis puts up with some reflections and inspirations on the studies and research going on related to social relief in Qinghai.