Research On Shaanxi Famine And People's Livelihood During The Republic Of China

Shaanxi’s fragile ecological environment and complex topography determine that the natural disasters in Shaanxi are characterized by drought and multiple disasters.Among them,there are two periods of the most serious disaster,namely the three-year drought known as "18 years famine in the Republic of China" and the five-year drought in the background of the War of Resistance Against Japan between 1941 and 1945.During the period of the Republic of China,the famine in Shaanxi made the population of Shaanxi change significantly both in quantity and spatial distribution.Taking the War of Resistance Against Japan as the demarcation point,before the War of Resistance,a large number of people died of famine,fled to other provinces or were trafficked,resulting in a large loss of population.After the War of Resistance Against Japan,Shaanxi,as the rear area of the War of Resistance against Japan and an important hub city in Northwest China,attracted a large number of refugees from the occupied areas.A large number of refugees poured into the provincial capitals of Xi’an and Huangkeng to make a living.During this period,the population of Shaanxi Province experienced a brief surge.Food is the key to people’s livelihood.Food problem can not be ignored in any era and should be solved first.During the period of the Republic of China,frequent natural disasters in Shaanxi led to a large-scale reduction in grain production or even a failure of harvest,resulting in a sharp rise in grain prices,and a large number of victims died of famine.At the same time,the warlords of the Shanxi separatist regime,in order to seek their own self-interest and ignore the lives of the people,forced farmers to grow opium while levying heavy taxes,which made the disaster victims who could not afford to be hit exhausted their financial resources and bored their livelihoods.The survival crisis brought about by the famine has challenged the human nature and moral bottom line of this period unprecedentedly,which has resulted in a series of social problems.Such as the abandonment of wives and children,trafficking in women and children is no longer news,more easy to eat human tragedy.Extreme economic poverty,coupled with political chaos,has undoubtedly become a hotbed of banditry.Many of the victims who fell grass for the bandits were collected by warlords.Since then,the bandits and soldiers have intensified social instability.The famine caused a large number of people in Shaanxi Province to abandon the land they depended on for survival and become vagrants.In addition,the refugees fleeing to Shaanxi Province greatly increased the difficulty of social security management.The resettlement of these vagrants and refugees,as well as the prevalence of superstition,made the Shaanxi government,which had been unable to protect itself at that time.Facing the great disaster,we can not do without the guidance of the government’s macro-policy,the close cooperation of the local districts and counties,and the support of the folk forces.During the period of the Republic of China,in order to cope with drought,alleviate famine as much as possible,and provide basic production and living conditions for the victims,various districts and counties carried out measures such as water conservancy construction,saving and preparing for famine,autumn grain rushing,relief by work and establishing shelters and medical centers for victims.The non-governmental charitable organizations represented by China International Famine Relief Commission also made positive contributions to the relief work in Shaanxi during this period.