Remittances, Donations, and Investments in Taishan, China, since 1978: A Transnational Development Pattern by Feng Zhang B.A., Sun Yat-sen University, 1991 M.Phil., Hong Kong Baptist University, 1999 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Sociology) THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA July 2007 © Feng Zhang, 2007 Abstract One of the most prominent points of out-migration from China historically, since 1978 Taishan has again experienced substantial out-migration. My research seeks to describe the effects of monetary inputs from Chinese transnationals - in the form of remittances, donations, and investments - on social and economic transformation in Taishan. To date, the distinct and joint effects of these on ongoing socio-economic developments in China have not been systematically examined. My research demonstrates that transnational remittances, donations, and to a lesser degree investments, have intensive and permanent influences on households, communities and regions. A large proportion of the residents of Taishan receive remittances via transnational ties. Remittances, a primary income source for many recipients, contribute adversely to the stratification of incomes in the community and have a strong influence on the lifestyles and economic strategies of recipients. Large volumes of transnational donations have effectively modernized schools, hospitals, libraries, village planning, transportation and other sectors in local regions. Local governments therefore depend heavily upon such support for the public sector. Meanwhile, transnational investments in industries, few at first but many in recent years, have gradually changed the economic structure of Taishan, stimulating industrialization and increasing demographic diversity by attracting migrant workers from other places. The joint effects - the synergy - of transnational remittances, donations, and investments on socio-economic transformation in Taishan form a "transnational development pattern" that is distinct from the industrialization-orientated development course observable in other parts of the Pearl River delta and other coastal regions of China. Underlying the u synergy is a deeply embedded mentality among locals who desire to emigrate themselves and who expect and depend upon external financial support from family members who have already emigrated. This transnational development pattern has created dilemmas specific to Taishan, and deserves global comparison with other regions. iii Table of Contents Abstract ; ii Table of Contents iv List of Tables vi List of Figures . viii Transliteration ix Conversions of Chinese Currency, Measures and Units x Abbreviation List xi Mapl The Pearl River Delta And China xii Map2 Taishan Townships xiii Acknowledgements xiv Chapter 1 Introduction: Taishanese Emigrants and Their Influences in the Place of Origin 1 Chapter 2 Literature Review, Research Purpose, and Conceptualization 9 Chapter 3 Field Site, Data, and Research Methods 37 Chapter 4 History of Taishanese Emigration and China's Policies toward Chinese Transmigrants after 1978 59 Chapter 5 Transnational Ties, Remittances, and the Household Economy 94 Chapter 6 "Patriotism": Donations and Investments of Taishanese Transnational 125 Chapter 7 Discussion and Conclusion: A Transnational Development Pattern 156 iv Appendix 1 Transliteration List of Key Terms 184 Appendix 2 Questions Related to Chinese Transnationals in the Second and Third Survey in Jianglian Village 185 Appendix 3 Chinese Immigrants to the United States, 1879-1940 191 Appendix 4 Annual Average Exchange Rates of US Dollar and HK Dollar for RMB Yuan 192 Appendix 5 Selected Annual Economic Indicators of Taishan, 1985-2004 193 Appendix 6 Selected Annual Economic Indicators of Dongguan, 1985-2004 194 Appendix 7 Selected Annual FDI Indicators in Dongguan, 1984-1997 196 Appendix 8 Price Indices of Guangdong Province 1978-2005 197 Appendix 9 Price Indices of China 1978-2005 ..! 198 Bibliography 199 v List of Tables Table 3.1 Taishan Population in Selected Years 40 Table 3.2 Difference of Pronunciation among Mandarin, Standard Cantonese, and Taishanese 42 Table 3.3 Major Economic Indicators of Taishan in 2004 43 Table 3.4 Socio.demographic Characteristics of the Survey Samples 53 Table 5.1 Proportions of Households with Transnational Ties and Remittance Households 95 Table 5.2 Household Categories by Relationship with Remitters 98 Table 5.3 Occupation of Primary Remittance Contributor, 2000 99 Table 5.4 Remittance Flows to Jianglian Village 101 Table 5.5 Annual Remittance Volume and Personal Savings in Foreign Currencies in Taishan, 1979-2003 103 Table 5.6 Weight of Remittances in Household Income 106 Table 5.7 Remittances and Household Income 107 Table 5.8 Interquartile Range (IQR) of Each Household Group 108 Table 5.9. Clothes-Shopping Locations 1986 112 Table 5.10 Commodities Owned by Remittance and Non-remittance Households, 1986-2000 114 Table 5.11 Popular Reasons among Remittance Households for Transnational Support 116 Table 5.12 Frequencies of Household Economic Strategies 119 Table 6.1 Annual Taishanese Transnational Donations to Schools in Taishan, 1978-1989 131 vi Table 6.2 Taishanese Transnationals' Donations on Major Education Projects 132 Table 6.3 Distributions of Transnational Donors for Duanfen Hospital 135 Table 6.4 Annual Taishanese Transnational Donations, 1978-2003 141 Table 6.5 Statistics of Taishanese Transnational Donations on Public Sectors 1978-2003 142 Table 6.6 Commemoration Categories in Duanfen Hospital Buildings 152 Table 6.7 Honourable Titles Awarded by Meihua Yue Bao 155 vii List of Figures Figure 2.1 Operational Research Framework 25 Figure 4.1 Population and Its Natural Growth Rate of Duanfen, 1979-2000 70 Figure 5.1 Gini Coefficient of Annual Per Capita Income 110 Figure 7.1 Numbers of Elementary and Secondary Schools in Hangmen by Selected Year 169 viii Transliteration Transliteration of Chinese Terms Contemporary China uses Pinyin system, the form of romanization of Mandarin or Putonghua and the official national standard spoken language based upon the Beijing dialect. Transliterations of most Chinese terms in this thesis are romanized via the Pinyin spelling system. Cantonese is a much different pronunciation system from Putonghua. My research site is located in a Cantonese dominant region. Though Cantonese spellings have been widely accepted, some terms are given both Pinyin and Cantonese spelling forms. For example, the Four Counties has two spellings: Siyi and Szeyap (Pinyin and Cantonese respectively). However, with person or place names already widely known in other forms of spelling, the commonly accepted spellings are used in this study, for instance, Sun Yat-sen, and Kuomintang (KMT) in the Wade-Giles system. ix Conversions of Chinese Currency, Measures and Units Chinese Currency: Yuan: Unit of Chinese currency, also known as Renminbi (YRMB). 1 yuan (dollar) = 10 jiao (dimes) = 100 fen (cents) As of April 30th, 2007, the major currency exchange rates for RMB were: 1 yuan =0.14457 Canadian Dollar = 0.12964 US Dollar = 1.01391 HK Dollar For more information of the annual average exchange rates of US dollar and HK dollar for Renminbi yuan, please refer to Appendix 1 of this dissertation. Chinese Measures and Units Mu: Chinese imperial system of area. Conversions of this unit to metric are: 1 mu = 666.6667 square meter = 0.06666667 hectare Cun & Chi: Chinese imperial units of length 1 chi = 10 cun = 1 meter 1 cun = 3.33 centimeter Abbreviation List Abbreviation Full Name ACROF All-China Retuned Overseas Federation CCP Chinese Communist Party COEA China Overseas Exchange Association CPPCC Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference CPR Canadian Pacific Railway FDI Foreign Direct Investment IMF International Monetary Fund KMT Kuomintang NPC National People's Congress OCAC Overseas Chinese Affairs Office OCC Overseas Chinese Committee PRC People's Republic of China SEZ Special Economic Zone xi Map 1 The Pearl River Delta And China Source: After Johnson, Graham E. and Woon, Y. F.. 1997. "The Response to Rural Reform in an Overseas Chinese Area: Examples from Two Localities in the Western Pearl River Delta Region, South China", Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 31 (1):34. xii Map 2 Taishan Townships Source: Drawn by Feng Zhang. xm Acknowledgements I owe my greatest debt of gratitude to Professor Graham E. Johnson, my principal advisor, without whom this dissertation would have been impossible. Professor Johnson guided me in my study of Taishan, and kept a close eye on every step I made in my program. Since 2000, he has used his research grants to employ me as a research assistant and fund my fieldwork in Taishan. He also granted me access to previous survey data he gathered in Taishan in 1986 and 1994 and lent me his qiaokan collection, the overseas journals, magazines, and newspapers published in Taishan since early 1980s. Unavailable in any library, this qiaokan collection made an invaluable contribution to my research. For me, Professor Johnson is not only a supervisor and mentor, but also a confidant. His support reached beyond the academic sphere. As a newcomer to Vancouver, and later a landed immigrant, my family and I have received a lot of help from him and his wife, Dr. Elizabeth L. Johnson. I would like to thank the other advisory committee members, Drs. Rima Wilkes and Gerry Veenstra, for their insightful suggestions, particularly their critical comments regarding the