Mama Chen's Printing Press China Close Up


Mama Chen's Printing Press

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Zhu Zhenghui is one of China's 60 million disabled people.

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He and more than a dozen others in his village suffer from restricted growth.

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Determined to get a job and a better life,

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Zhu longed to escape to the city.

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By chance, he met a journalist who put him in touch with a factory

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employing disabled people in Chengdu.

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It was the start of a new life.

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Today Zhu is a unit manager at the White Horse Printing Press.

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The factory produces every kind of print product

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- documents, tickets, books and magazines.

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The majority of workers are disabled.

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Zhu's job is quality control,

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and when there are deadlines to meet his disability is an added pressure.

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Director of the printing press is Chen Si Ming.

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She's known to everyone as Mama Chen,

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and the factory is her life's work.

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In the early 1980s, the White Horse Press

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was a tiny state collective on the edge of collapse.

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It already employed some disabled people.

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Mrs Chen, a staunch supporter of disability rights,

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saw the chance to take it over, and bring in even more disabled workers.

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And proved it they have.

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The factory has grown from little more than a shed

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to 3,000 square metres of workshops with some 60 modern machines.

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And its greatest achievement, - a satisfied workforce.

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But these workers are the lucky ones.

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In many ways, the Whitehorse Press is a survivor from a previous era.

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China's rapid changeover to a market-driven economy with market-driven values

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has left hundreds of thousands of disabled people jobless - forced to scratch a living.

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New training schemes are being set up

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but millions miss out and have no income at all.

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In towns and cities everywhere, begging is a common sight.

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These young people have no future.

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The government is now trying to force all companies

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to take on and train a small percentage of disabled people.

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But at the same time, state-run factories,

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struggling to make a profit have been making workers redundant.

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The White Horse Press owes its survival to Mama Chen's fighting spirit.

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Monday morning at the printing press - and a general meeting.

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A Communist anthem kicks off proceedings,

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something of a rarity in factories these days.

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THEY SING

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This morning Mrs Chen reminds her workers of their production targets.

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Just recently they've been falling behind.

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Over the years the printing press has been showered with awards

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for its contribution to the cause of the disabled.

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It's a model of old-fashioned Communist values -

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strong leadership from the top and a commitment to caring for the workers.

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Mama Chen tries to create a sense of family in the factory, but it isn't easy.

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Cai Zhiying has been employed here for more than ten years

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and supervises the work of the deaf group.

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Xiao Xia is one of a dozen deaf employees at the factory.

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She's in her early 30s and with Mama Chen's encouragement

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she's worked her way up to a good position in the firm.

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She says one day she'd like to manage

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a big supermarket like Carrefour.

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She knows it's just a dream.

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But taking on more responsibility has boosted her confidence,

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and she's also found herself a partner.

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Her husband, Xiao Feng, who's also deaf,

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works with a small team in one of the workshops.

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Initially Xiao Xia's parents were against the marriage,

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but Mrs Chen managed to win them over.

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Working at the factory has given the couple the means to an independent life.

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Between them they can earn about £150 a month,

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a good wage by local standards.

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They've got a flat in one of Chengdu's older compounds.

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Once railway-workers lived here, like Xiao Feng's parents.

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When they were given the opportunity to buy their flat

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they decided to pass it on to the newly-weds.

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Tonight Xiao Feng's parents have been invited to dinner.

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Xiao Feng's mother is delighted with her son's progress at the printing press,

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but fearful lest one day it's forced to close.

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Xiao Feng's mother is right to be concerned.

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Mama Chen is struggling to stay ahead of the growing competition from private firms.

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It's forced her to invest in a costly new colour printer

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that can achieve the results that her clients now expect.

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She does have some satisfied customers.

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But to make the machine pay for itself, they need to win new business.

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Cash-flow problems or not, Mrs Chen refuses to compromise her ideals.

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Especially when it comes to enriching the lives of her flock.

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It's October 1st, China's National Day,

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and a chance for a rather special treat.

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This is Chengdu's brand-new Panda Theme Park.

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Giant pandas are bred here

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and massive government investment has been poured into the park

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with the aim of turning it into the city's top tourist attraction.

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But amongst all the good spirits,

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there's a general feeling of concern for Mrs Chen.

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She's been seriously ill, and she's been talking of retirement.

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For today the firm's financial problems, and Mrs Chen's retirement,

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recede into the background.

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Yet the reality is that a downturn in the factory's fortunes

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could affect everyone's future.

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Xiao Feng wants to continue at the factory and learn new skills.

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Xiao Xia is keen to take on more administrative work.

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Cai Zhiying has a heart condition

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and relies on being able to work flexible hours.

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Zhu plans to stay at the factory as long as he can,

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and use his savings to move back to his village.

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Since he's been at the printing press

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Zhu's been sending money home regularly.

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His ties with his family, especially his two nieces, have strengthened.

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When he was young he was ridiculed and bullied.

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But now he's local boy made good, and he has a dream for the future.

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Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

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