Job, Income the Big Challenge in Quake Zone Resettlement

Three years have passed since the Wenchuan earthquake killed more than 70,000 people. Today, resettlement has been completed in most of the quake zone. In the fourth episode of our special series, "Wenchuan 3 Years On," Han Bin revisits one village to see how things are unfolding. As he finds out, the big challenge is finding a job and income.

Tomorrow in "Wenchuan, 3 Years On," Han Bin revisits a quake orphan he met in a rescue hospital three years ago. Things looked bleak then, but love from relatives and society has helped the boy move forward.

Back to normal life.

Farmers from Matou Village are being relocated here, some 3 kilometers away from their quake damaged homes. The design of the new buildings comes from Taiwan architect Hsieh Ying-chun.

Hsieh says the actual homes, which retain the local ethnic style, closely follow his original ideas.

Heieh Ying-Chun, Taiwan Architect said "This is a steel structure building. The steel framework is inside, and bondstone outside. This is different from traditional farmhouse buildings, which mainly used wood, bricks, and cement. It's much stronger, but lighter, plus the green concept complies with the international trend."

The architect is amazed how quickly reconstruction is coming along.

Hsieh Ying-Chun said "I think the speed of China's reconstruction in the quake zone is unprecedented in the history of mankind. Although there has been a lot of support from outside, resettlement and reconstruction depend mainly on villagers themselves. Perhaps that's the key for success."

Matou's resettlement started before the first winter after the quake in 2008. The family of Wu Cuihua and 40 others were being relocated here. It was then, we came upon Hsieh Ying-chun. He was teaching villagers how to build the new houses, with low-cost materials. Only the steel framework was up then.

Three years later, we found Wu Cuihua again.

She told us the new housing is fairly comfortable, but she needs time to adapt to the changes.

The family now live in a three-story building. But Cuihua says money is still their biggest problem. And Cuihua can not forget the past.

Wu Cuihua, Matou Village Farmer said "It was a terrible time. Life was so difficult."

This footage reminds us of the time when Cuihua's family were living in a shack. It was damp, small and cold. Matou's mountain location meant the villagers had to depend mainly on themselves for resettlement.

The 2008 earthquake damaged a third of the residential buildings in the disaster areas. So, building new homes has been the priority for the local government. The provincial government says over 90 percent of the residents have now moved into permanent housing. But other parts of normal life, like jobs, income, and education, remain a long term task.

Most villagers have lost their farmland, the basis of their livelihood. So, they have to go elsewhere to find jobs.

Chen Liming, Matou Village Farmer said "I have to rely on myself to earn money as a migrant worker, but I haven't found a job this year."

Having no skills other than farming, Cuihua has to stay at home. And after feeding the family, very little money is left for anything else.