The Third Front movement, as a national project has mobilized massive factories and workers to migrate from the eastern coastal regions to the inland areas from the 1960s to the 1980s, particularly to the mountainous region. However, despite the extensive migration, workers largely maintained their original cultural practices and lifestyles, their daily routines were confined within the factory, and cultural exchange did not appear as expected. This resulted in the formation of a distinctive society within the factory, where workers from various regions of China lived in a unique culture bubble that was isolated from the broader society outside the factory gates. The cause of such a phenomenon can be attributed to the prioritization of political and military objectives in the communist national construction plan. The way factories were constructed during this period has fostered a collective community within the Third Front factories and led to the isolation of migrant workers from the local society.
The Third Front movement is a strategic response to the perceived threat of military conflict with the Soviet Union and other potential adversaries during the Cold War. The Chinese government, under the leadership of Mao Tse-tung, aimed to disperse key industries away from the vulnerable coastal areas to ensure their survival in the event of an attack. The relocation involved the establishment of numerous industrial complexes, known as the "Third Front," in remote inland regions. This ambitious initiative led to the resettlement of millions of young workers into the Southwestern mountain areas, and most of these workers were from metropoles like Shanghai.
The factory's status as an independent and isolated society was primarily attributed to its remote location, which resulted in communication challenges. Due to military strategic considerations, factories must be located in covert terrain, nestled against the mountains, hidden, and dispersed in order to be detected by the enemy during the wartime.1As a result, most of the factories were located in desolate and uninhabited areas with relatively small scale. This decision might be perfect under military considerations, but it was not a good place under economic considerations. Most of these places are far away from towns and markets, and the surrounding environment is very harsh and dangerous. Daily or weekly shuttle truck was the only way for people to went outside, and two hours was even considered pretty close.2 This means that the factory was almost the only place in the area for people to stay, it is almost impossible for workers to reach the surrounding towns on their own.
Under political leadership, the heavy work schedule in factories leaves workers without enough leisure time and energy to go out. Building socialism with greater, faster, better, and more economical results was still the main guidance of third-front construction. There were slogans like “two shifts covering the workload of three” and “production first, life latter”, this kind of political guidance has twisted to prioritized production and simplified life. 3 Because of the limited labor resources, to produce the most products in the shortest time workers has to working for a longer time. As described by a retired female engineer: “We went to work at 6am every morning ... Sometimes we had to work until the mid-night. You see, we worked from 6am in the morning to the midnight! Our overalls were always wet!”4 Both male and female workers were required to work 9-12 hours a day in heavy physical work. And it becomes almost impossible for workers to hang out. Unless it is an emergency, most people simply do not have time to reach the local county after getting off from their work.
Since workers spent the absolute majority of their time within their factories, more living facilities have been built inside the factory. The living conditions in factories were extremely simple and basic during the early stages of the Third Front movement. The guide of “production first, life later” has caused many workers to run back to their hometowns because they couldn’t endure such a poor environment. To address this issue, factories began continuously adding essential facilities such as dormitories, cafeterias, sports fields, clinics, etc. to ameliorate workers’ discontent.5 To ensure urban workers are satisfied with their living environment and feel at home, factories are being developed to resemble miniature cities, aiming to provide a wide range of service facilities similar to those found in urban areas. Things like kindergartens/schools, basketball courts, and halal dining halls can all be found within those factories.6 Because of the rural location, these supportive facilities were hard to find in their surrounding villages and towns. Thus, the need for migrant workers to go out significantly decreased since these facilities were built.
Latter-built factories were designed to serve as a community which integrated both workshops and supportive living facilities. Because the idea of “neighbourhood” was considered during the planning stage, these factories effectively balance the demands of work and life. Factories were centred with shared spaces like basketball courts, small parks, and grand auditoria, these social services and welfare facilities were seen as a “container” of collective life.7 The family dormitories provided by the factory for married families allowed workers to continue to live a collectivist life even after their marriage. Everyone’s children go to school together, family members wash clothes and eat together. “in the dormitory building, everyone’s relationships were, really pretty harmonious, pretty good.”8 Worker’s colleagues are also their neighbours and their revolutionary comrades, they were staying together all the time.
Within such an isolated society, factories has not only comprehensive living facilities but also a series of government organizations that is independent from the ruling of local government. Because of worker’s danwei and the restriction of hukou, workers of the Third Front factories were not under the jurisdiction of the local government. Public security issues were in charge of the Rear Base Management Bureau, with the example of the Shanghai Steel mill, even when some serious issues happened, local police could only detent people locally and immediately transfer them back to Shanghai for further judgment and arrest. The independent existence of these administrative organizations allows two independent administrative systems to exist in one place at the same time: third front factories and local society.
The Danwei was another reason why migrant workers stay closely connected with their colleagues rather than locals. Comprehensive living facilities and the establishment of a collective society have fostered unity among migrant workers, leading them to rely on each other in their daily lives. While planning the factory, Third Front builders believed that “it was enviable to work as a ‘danwei’ man rather than being just an ordinary ‘social man’.”9 For most individuals, the Danwei provides them with a sense of belonging in a collectivist society. Particularly while they were away from their hometowns and families, the Danwei served as a source of support.
As an organization, Danwei was a center of worker’s daily life, it takes responsibility for almost all aspects of people's lives, including work, housing, marriage, education, and so on. Having a Danwei means that a person is a wage earner and does not need to worry about their basic living needs, It was seen as a welfare which only urban residents have during the Mao era. Being a Danwei people was considered a source of pride and superiority, it distinguished workers from peasants who relied solely on natural elements for living.
The migrant workers’ identity as both workers and urban residents even lowered their willingness to interact with locals, especially in terms of marriage. Once they married locals, it would be nearly impossible for them to return to Shanghai.10 Hence, we see very few examples of urban workers marrying locals because everyone hopes to return to their hometown cities. To address the marriage concerns of workers, new textile factories were often constructed near Third Front sites. Workers could apply to have their wives placed in these textile factories or could marry female workers within the same factory under the “matchmaking” of their Danwei.
In conclusion, the Third Front movement's emphasis on industrial development in remote areas fostered the creation of isolated and self-contained communities within the factories. The prioritization of production, coupled with limited transportation and comprehensive living facilities within the factory premises, contributed to the formation of distinct societies where workers relied heavily on their danwei for support and social interaction. This isolation not only impacted workers' interactions with the broader local society but also influenced marriage patterns and social dynamics within these communities. The Third Front movement, while serving strategic military objectives, had profound social implications that shaped the lives and interactions of migrant workers during that era.
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