Plan to merge Beijing districts approved

The capital's Chongwen and Xuanwu districts will soon become history as the State Council, the country's Cabinet, has approved a plan to merge them with two other districts to improve the city's development and governance.

Xuanwu will merge with Xicheng district and Chong-wen will join Dongcheng district, according to a plan by the Beijing municipal government.

The four districts form a core area of Beijing. They serve as its political, administrative, economic and financial centers, and boast numerous historical and tourist attractions.

The relatively limited geographical area of the districts has restrained their development, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Chongwen and Xuanwu have also been lagging behind the two other districts in economic strength and the municipal government hopes the consolidation will achieve balanced growth and improved governance.

The government also hopes the move will help cut administrative costs and improve efficiency by trimming the number of government institutions.

The announcement of the plan drew various responses from local residents.

Chongwen resident Wang Yuan, 28, said she does not care about the merge plan.

"Many of Chongwen's landmarks such as Beijing Amusement Park and Chongwen Market have all disappeared during the city's development, taking away with them our fond memories," she said.

"For local residents, Chong-wen is already no longer the district we were familiar with."

Beijing Amusement Park, which many residents associate with their childhood, was shut down last month because of poor management.

Some seniors said they will be sorry to see the two districts go.

Wang He, a 62-year-old Beijinger born and raised up in Chongwen, said that when he was young, the district was full of hutong lined with traditional courtyards (siheyuan) that reflected the best cultural aspects about living in Beijing.

But now the courtyards have been replaced with high concrete apartment blocks, he said.

"My family roots are in Chongwen," said Wang, who now lives in suburban Fengtai.

"I'm really sad that Chong-wen's name will be gone."

But other people are more supportive of the latest change.

Song Yingchang, a professor of urban development and environment research at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the move will optimize social resources.

"Chongwen and Xuanwu are in the southern part of the city and have much historical heritage, but they are short of large and profitable tax-paying enterprises. They may get more financial support to protect their precious local culture after the consolidation."

Local educational resources may also face new arrangements, Song said.

Current regulations require teenagers to be admitted by schools in the same district where their residency is registered.

"However, the consolidation may mean trouble for governmental officials as positions will be cut, " he said.

Song said some of the affected officials may have to serve in remote districts such as Daxing and Tongzhou.


Source:China Daily