Author: Andrew Jacobs
Publication: The Times of India
Date: August 9, 2008
Li Tianchao is an itinerant worker who has
spent his adult life toiling long hours, living in bleak worksite dormitories
and chasing the next construction job from boomtown to boomtown. A no-nonsense,
weatherworn man, he is not quick to grouse.
But as he waited for a train to take him back
to his hometown north of the capital, Li, 50, could not help but feel wistful.
"The Olympics have finally come to China,
and I won't even be here," he said. He glanced up at the "Participate
in the Olympics, Enjoy the Fun" banner and shrugged.
Like thousands of others who packed Beijing's
main train station on Thursday, Li was prompted to leave town by a lack of
work and an unwritten government policy encouraging migrant workers to clear
out until the dignitaries and journalists have gone home.
As the city readied itself for the pageantry
and the fireworks of Friday night's opening ceremonies, its main train station
was packed with migrant workers whose jobs had been sacrificed to the Olympics
juggernaut. The atmosphere was a mix of expectation and boredom, but also
disappointment and regret.
No one knows for sure how many of Beijing's 17 million residents are migrants,
but there are thought to be around 4 million.
He Yanjun and his wife said that for two years
they had earned a decent living installing tiles in the homes of Beijing's
newly moneyed class. When the work dried up last month, they rented an apartment
and tried to stick it out. The jobs never came, and the rent was steep, so
on Thursday the couple packed their belongings and joined the throngs at the
station.
Not everyone was leaving Beijing with regret.
Wang Cheng and Xiao Xinyan said they were initially annoyed to find themselves
suddenly unemployed. But facing a month of idleness, the couple, both 22,
decided to seize the moment and get married.
But what about missing the Olympics excitement?
Wang, a construction worker, pondered, then said he was actually relieved
to leave Beijing. "Besides," he added, "we'll get a better
view by watching the Games on television."