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Nectar Gan

When Yang Changhe decided to help migrant workers thrown out of their homes in a citywide safety crackdown in Beijing, he didn’t expect it would end in his own eviction.
Yang, who moved to the Chinese capital from Hunan in 2009, ran a drop-in centre for other migrants in his spare time and was one of many members of the public who rallied to help the tens of thousands of people given just days – and in some cases hours – to leave their homes on the fringes of the city.
Chinese intellectuals urge Beijing authorities to stop ‘forcing’ tens of thousands of migrant workers out of city in wake of deadly fire
“I saw there were so many people desperately in need of help, and I just wanted to do something for them,” he said.
The migrants were evicted as part of a 40-day campaign launched last week to address safety threats in the aftermath of a residential fire that killed 19 people this month.
The campaign corresponds with a bigger push over the last year to limit the size of Beijing’s population, a drive that has involved shutting down wholesale markets and warehouses and clearing slum areas.

The municipal authorities have denied the most recent sweep targets the so-called low-end population of migrant workers and their families, insisting the main goal is to tackle threats from unlicensed buildings.
But the effect has been to force men, women and children onto the street at the start of winter.
That prompted Yang, 43, to swing into action. In March he had opened the drop-in centre called Tongzhou Home, meaning “in the same boat”, providing a range of free services such as movie nights, haircuts and table tennis for migrant workers – all supported by donations from the public.
On Friday afternoon he posted a notice online offering displaced people the chance to store luggage or stay the night at the centre. He also urged people with a car to help.
19 killed as fire sweeps through Beijing accommodation block
That night, as he waited for word to spread, Yang was visited by police officers who told him to cease and desist. The officers watched as he deleted the online appeal, returning the next day to tell him to shut down Tongzhou Home.
“They said I wasn’t certified to take in the workers, because I’m not running a guest house or hotel,” he said.
In the meantime he fielded more than 20 offers for help – each one of which had to be turned down because of the police.
The Majiqiao police station and the Tongzhou district public security bureau could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

Similar appeals have disappeared from the accounts of other not-for-profit groups, including the Illness Challenge Foundation registered with the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
Through its public WeChat account on Friday, the foundation offered to store luggage for workers with rare diseases and help them find new accommodation. The post has since been deleted because it “violated regulations”, according to an online notice.
A catering industry group also called on restaurants to use its account to post job openings for migrant workers on Friday, attracting job offers at more than 500 restaurants until the section was closed down.
Beijing’s migrant workers sent packing in safety crackdown after deadly blaze
Just days old, another group called Warm Beijing saw its posts deleted, according to a volunteer.
The hardline official approach comes as authorities continue to narrow the space for civil society by cracking down on rights groups and introducing legislation to exert tighter control over the sector.
Back at his rented home above the closed drop-in centre on Sunday night, Yang had packed up his belongings and was ready to move out, ordered to leave in yet another visit by the police. He said he would stay at a friend’s place before looking for a new home for himself and his community endeavour.
“I’ve worked in a factory, been a street vendor, and run a few small businesses – I know how hard it is [to be a migrant worker],” he said.
“I don’t regret [helping them]. It was the right thing to do and there is nothing to regret.”


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People move out of a residential building on the outskirts of Beijing close to where a fire in a two-storey structure killed 19 people this month. Photo: Simon Song

epa06326076 Chinese security guards block a gate to stop people from entering a clothes wholesale market which is closed due to Beijing's new urban planning policy, Beijing, China, 13 November 2017. Beijing's new mayor Cai Qi has vowed to cut the city off all the functions unrelated to its status as the national capital, in an effort that is seen as pushing the growing population into the surrounding provinces. Wholesale markets and urban villages where the migrants work and live are being torn down in what reports state is an attempt to force lower-income residents out of the city. EPA-EFE/WU HONG EPA-EFE/WU HONG

All the shops have been closed on the street at the area where a fire killed 19 people on Nov. 22, 2017, in Beijing. A big fire broke out on Nov. 18 afternoon at Jufuyuan Apartments, a two-storey building used as rented accommodation in a village in Daxing, an outer district to the south of Beijing city centre, killing 19 people, and burnt several others. 22NOV17 SCMP/Simon Song

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China

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People & Culture

Chinese migrant worker Yang Changhe lost the roof over his head when he tried to help those suddenly forced out by a government crackdown on safety


Safety in China

Migrant workers in China