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Calling home across the Straits
Zhuang Genchao, a retired teacher from Taiwan's Jinmen Island, is enjoying retirement in a brand-new apartment. But it is not in Taiwan. He purchased a new flat in Xiamen in East China's Fujian Province, together with his son and daughter-in-law from the mainland and the couple's grandson.
Daily, he greets his neighbours, most of whom are also from Jinmen, and chats over tea about their grandchildren and life in Jinmen. Like Zhuang and his neighbours, more and more former Jinmen residents are moving to the mainland, buying properties, such as apartments or storefronts, in Xiamen. It makes sense, since the mainland city faces Jinmen across the Taiwan Straits, and there is the shortest distance between the two sides. When the tide ebbs to its lowest the distance is only 1,800 metres. Since 2001 when direct ferry service connected Xiamen and Jinmen, more than 3,000 apartments have been bought in Xiamen by people from Jinmen, statistics from the Xiamen-Jinman Compatriots Association show. They are being used either as accommodations or for business purposes. In Jinmen, where its total population of around 50,000 is registered in 160 villages, the number literally translates into one suite per 17 residents. And like most Taiwan locals, Jinmen islanders prefer living in compact communities, Zhuang said. In Wujiang Diamond Plaza, a residential quarter in Xiamen where Zhuang lives, Jinmen residents account for more than 60 per cent of the 300 house-owners. Naturally, the quarter is known as "Jinmen Village" by locals. And in another residential quarter, Jinling Garden, some 200 apartments and storefronts have been purchased by Jinmen people, or about 70 per cent of the total. Most of the Jinmen home-buyer in Wujiang Diamond Plaza are elderly teachers and public servants who want to spend their retirement years in Xiamen. Many Jinmen business people travel frequently to Xiamen and have also chosen to own houses there. "I like Xiamen very much," Zhuang said, adding that, compared with Taiwan, it does not suffer from as many earthquakes and typhoons. "I feel so comfortable living with simple and honest Xiamen people... it's just like living in Jinmen because the two places have many similarities." Most of the Jinmen islanders are originally from southern Fujian Province, and speak with almost the same accent as Xiamen residents. The two places have many similarities in their traditions, food and drink, folk slangs and even names of places. Statistics show that so far there are about 5,000 Jinmen people residing in Xiamen, accounting for 60 to 70 per cent of the total Jinmen residents in Fujian Province. Xiamen has become the most important residence on the mainland for Jinmen people, according to many. However, due to restrictions placed by Taiwan authorities, Zhuang is only allowed to stay on the mainland for half the year, or his pension would be reduced, Zhuang said. Zhuang said he hesitated when he planing to buy his apartment due to the restrictions on stays. But considering the expensive housing prices in Taiwan and Xiamen's rising real-estate market, Zhuang now thinks he chose the right course. Educational advantages Apart from enjoying retirement, some Jinmen residents said education for their children was a principal reason for relocating to the mainland. As the quality of many mainland universities has been recognized by Taiwan people, more and more Jinmen students prefer to study at Xiamen University, one of their favourite choices. Zhang Yushan, a first-year student from Jinmen studying traditional Chinese medicine at Xiamen University, said that because there is no university in Jinmen, students have to travel to Taiwan Island or foreign countries for advanced education. Zhang also cited the two places' similarities in dialect and customs as one important reason for her choice. In addition, the cheaper cost for university study in Xiamen than that in Taiwan is also the reason many Jinmen students decide to study across the Straits. Strong identification "In my opinion, so many Jinmen people buy houses in Xiamen mainly because they have strong identification with their motherland," said Chen Jingwu, vice-general manager of the Xiamen Huaxiang Real Estate Development Company and developer of the Wujiang Diamond Plaza. Chen, who is also from Jinmen, cited himself as a good example. Ten years ago, Chen left his hometown of Jinmen when he was just 20 years old, and came to Xiamen to carve out a career. Later, he married a mainland woman and had two daughters, both born in Xiamen. "My love for Xiamen has deepened the longer I remained in the city," said Chen. He classified the modes of his colleagues' and friends' career experiences into three phases: In the middle of the last century, their grandparents sailed to Southeast Asia to earn their fortunes. In the 1960s to 1970s, their father's generation started their lifetime undertakings on Taiwan Island. For his generation and those following, most have turned their eyes to the mainland. Statistics from the Xiamen-Jinmen Compatriots Association indicate that Jinmen business people have invested more than US$1 billion on the mainland during recent years. In addition, the launch of direct Xiamen-Jinmen ferry services have served only to complement that economic activity, Chen said. A great number of Taiwan business people have traveled between Taiwan and cities on the mainland via Jinmen, which has changed it into a favourable passenger and logistics transfer centre. By the end of 2004, the Xiamen-Jinmen sea voyage had seen more than 500,000 people shuttling between the two places. Furthermore, the package tour to Jinmen opened at the end of last year by Fujian Provincial Government has allowed the island to become even closer to the mainland, said Chen. At the same time, Chen also attributes the success of his projects to his own marketing strategy. "Our sales have focused on Jinmen residents from the very beginning," said Chen. "The projects in my company are built for Jinmen people," he said. In early 2000 when Chen's company started the advanced sales for Wujiang Diamond Plaza, he went back to the middle school in Jinmen he used to attend, and promoted the project to his former teachers. Chen recalled the promotion was a great success that brought him sales of nearly 20 million yuan (US$2.4 million). A billboard advertising the project become the first billboard for Xiamen real estate projects in Jinmen. According to Chen, the house style of the Plaza is specially designed to cater to the tastes of Jinmen residents. Most apartments have fine decorations. Compared with the costly houses in Taiwan, the prices of the houses in Xiamen are reasonable for Jinmen home buyers, he said. For instance, a suite of 110-square- metre apartment with good decorations in the Plaza costs about 500,000 yuan (US$60,240). The price is acceptable for most Jinmen wage-earners, Chen said. With the success of Wujiang Diamond Plaza, he founded another real estate company and successively contracted three other projects in the city, measuring a total construction area of more than 100,000 square metres. And his target group is still Jinmen people, Chen said. "I have much confidence in the future of the two sides across the Straits," he said. "As the cross-Straits relations has been gradually improved, I believe my real estate market will have great potential." |
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