Since reform and opening-up, Hainan has borne the ideals of countless people as the biggest testing field for development.
After 20 years of rapid change, Hainan has become a stage for dreams.
Haikou native, Li Lan, remember Haikou as a small and old town. There were few pedestrians on the road, and once in a while you could see a few rickshaws passing by, but you would barely see the trace of a car.
Li was born in 1959, and like many Hainan natives, she was brought up in a military compound. Her parents joined the People's Liberation Army (PLA), and fought all the way south with the PLA Fourth Field Army. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, they were stationed on Hainan Island.
Although Li spent most of her years in the army, and seldom went to Haikou, the only memories she had of the city were the bewildering pictures of poverty. In Haikou, along crisscrossing muddy dirt roads, there were short and low bungalows. Between the bungalows, you could sometimes see two-storey white houses in the style typical of Southeast Asia. These white buildings were built for returned overseas Chinese, and they were once the most luxurious buildings in Haikou.
Many people chose to leave due to the isolated environment and backward life.
In 1980, the central government set up three special economic zones in Guangdong Province. People in Hainan could smell the agitation, fermented in the wind, from the other side of the sea.
At the end of June in 1980, the State Council and Guangdong Province convened a symposium on the Hainan issue, which was the first symposium on the development of Hainan Island convened by the Central Government since reform and opening-up.
After the symposium, the planting and agricultural industries in Hainan became active, and a prosperous atmosphere overtook the island.
On April 13, 1988, the First Session of the Seventh People's Congress of China passed the 'Decision Establishing Hainan Province', and Hainan Province was formally declared established.
The news of the establishment of Hainan Province created a nationwide sensation at the time.
Following the 'gold rush' in Shenzhen, a 'Special Economic Province' with a much larger acreage was itself something full of temptation.
So, a turbulent spring tide of skilled personnel was quickly formed, rushing towards its destination - Hainan. And countless young people with dreams swarmed into Hainan from all over China.
By People's Daily Online
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