December 2, 2008
The big photo on the front page of today’s Chongqing Evening News shows migrant workers who have traveled thousands of miles on improvised motor tricycles on their way back home. Yesterday, the riders arrived in Chongqing, a city not far away from their home in Sichuan Province.
The workers told the newspaper that they all worked in a plastic factory in Dongguan, Guangdong Province. Recently, their boss suddenly disappeared, taking all the factory’s money with him. The workers decided to go home without being paid. They found ten discarded motorcycles in the factory and refashioned them into these three-wheeled mobile homes.
When the riders were stopped by Chongqing traffic police on an expressway yesterday, they had been on the road for ten days. Of the ten bikes they started out with, only three are still with them. The remainder were discarded along the road due to mechanical problems.
The traffic police, who at first intended to confiscate the vehicles, eventually changed their mind and decided to let them go. The Sichuan riders hit the road again after the police took their cooking gas canisters, which were regarded as too dangerous.
Also:
● Guo Jingming, a writer popular with young people, topped the list of China’s richest book authors in 2008. He is believed have made 13 million yuan this year. Guo has told the media that he does not know how much he has made.
● Some provinces have raised salaries for government employees. This move has been criticized as an example of the government favoring itself as many other people have received pay cuts due to the slumping economy.
- Chongqing Evening News (Chinese): Migrant workers traveled 3000 km on 12 motor tricycles to return home