2020-02-13 Beijing Review

32 BEIJING REVIEW FEBRUARY 13, 2020 http://www.bjreview.com

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u Xiaolong, a 31-year-old from the
Derung ethnic group, took part in an
online Spring Festival gala in January.
Unlike the grand gala broadcast live by China
Central Television on Lunar New Year’s Eve,
which was January 24 this year, this online
gala was recorded days before.
For the recording, Mu traveled all the
way from Dulongjiang Township in Yunnan
Province in southwest China to Langfang, a
city in Hebei Province neighboring Beijing.
The trip took him about three days.
Mu carried local specialties including
herbs, honey, mushroom, ethnic clothes and
craft items to the gala from his township.
Appearing in traditional Derung clothes, he
demonstrated and promoted the specialties
in the program.
The Derung, an ethnic group unknown
to many before, has drawn increasing at-
tention since 2018 for creating a miracle in
poverty alleviation.

Harsh conditions

Dulongjiang, named after the Dulong River
winding through it, is nestled in snow-
capped mountains bordering Myanmar.
Majority of the residents are from the
Derung ethnic group, which has a small
population.
Before the founding of the People’s
Republic of China in 1949, the Derung in
the township lived in primitive conditions.
For a long time after 1949, it remained one
of the poorest areas in China. Every year,
heavy snow blocked the township from the
outside world for about six months. Even
without the snow, it was extremely hard to
travel out of the township as there were no
roads. Landslides, avalanches and wild ani-
mal attacks added to the hardship.
But over the past three decades, things
have changed. The story of Mu is an epitome
of this township’s development.

When Mu was at the primary school-

going age, the town had only a small

school with three grades. For the fourth

grade and up, the children had to go to

the seat of Gongshan Dulong and Nu

Autonomous County, which the township

belongs to. The whole trip, although less

than 100 km, took over three days by foot.

Another choice was to slide along a steel

wire above the roaring Dulong, which was

very dangerous.

In 2000, Mu moved to the county seat

of Gongshan for schooling and had to travel

on foot. He was accompanied by adults who

carried a tent and enough food for three

days.

Since the township would be blocked

by snow for almost half a year, Mu and

other students from the township had no

choice but to live in the county seat all

through the winter and go back during

summer vacation.

Things got better when Mu reached high

school. With the road connecting the town-

ship and the county seat paved, the trip was

shortened to about 10 hours. But it was still a

long trip.

After high school, Mu enrolled in South-

Central University for Nationalities in Wuhan,

capital city of Hubei Province. After gradua-

tion, he chose to go back to his hometown.

In 2014, he started to work in the township

government. Also in that year, a tunnel that

connects the township to the outside was

Emerging

From Isolation

Once unknown to many, the Derung ethnic minority has gradually stepped into

the limelight By Yuan Yuan

The Derung celebrate the Kaquewa Festival, the most important festival of the ethnic group, in Kunming, capital city

of Yunnan Province, on January 1

CNS

PH

OTO