A Grateful Heart

By Yu Yan

‘Nowadays， some men still think women should stay at home， assisting their husbands and bring up the children. They say the outside world is full of deception and not suitable for women. I think the truth is just the opposite. Women have a special soft power， so female leaders can handle certain issues better than their male counterparts，”Yuan Xiaotang said.

Slender and capable， no one could imagine such a charming young lady could be a vice mayor， in charge of the most challenging economic work.

Born in July 1977 to a Hani ethnic minority family and without Party affiliation， Yuan was appointed vice mayor of Qujing City， southwest Chinas Yunnan Province， after passing the provinces civil service examination in 2012. Assuming the position at the age of 35， she became the youngest mayor ever in the province， a legendary achievement.

The Hani are one of Chinas 55 ethnic minorities， and have a population of 1.25 million. The ethnic group lives in concentrated communities in Yunnan.

Yuan was born in Ninger County， a nationallevel poverty-stricken county in Puer City in Yunnan. Currently she works as vice mayor of Qujing， the second biggest city in Yunnan and is responsible for the economic work of the city.

Responsibilities

After graduating from the Nanjing Technical College of Special Education in east Chinas Jiangsu Province， Yuan joined the Disabled Persons Federation in Puer in April 1996， where she worked for a whole decade. In 2008， she was appointed vice county magistrate of Zhenyuan County， Puer. In 2012， she was appointed vice mayor of Qujing.

Some people said Yuans career rise was so quick that it was like she boarded a rocket. When asked about it， Yuan smiled and admitted her successful promotion from a county in the border to the second biggest city in Yunnan was quite difficult， but she made it.

“Opportunities are only for those who are prepared to avail them，” said Yuan while talking about the secret of her success.

“First of all， continuing to learn is very important， and learning should remain a habit for life，” she added. She considers a good theoretical and political knowledge base to be very important for government officials especially in impoverished areas in the border.

Recalling the civil service examination， she said the time to prepare was quite limited. She was informed of the exam only 10 days before. Days before that， she was busy with a disaster relief task. Therefore， the knowledge accumulated previously played an important role in her success at the exam.

“In addition to a sound knowledge base， work performance is also extremely important，”she said.

Yuan sat the exam in August 2012， ranking top in both the written test and the interview. In 2012， Yunnan selected a number of deputy department level cadres through the civil service examination. A total of 25 officials born in the 1970s passed the exam， and were appointed to positions in 13 departments across Qujing and Yuxi cities， as well as several colleges and universities and state-owned enterprises.

“My most notable achievement at work is that I have built Zhenyuan into a state-level hygienic county， turning it from the dirtiest county of Puer to the cleanest，” Yuan said with pride.

Zhenyuan is an autonomous county of Yi， Hani and Lahu ethnic minorities， and also a national-level impoverished county which receives poverty relief assistance from the Central Government every year. To build such a place into a state-level hygienic county seemed impossible. But Yuan took up the challenge and achieved it.

“It was the result of the joint efforts of every citizen，” she said. “At that time， the whole county was enthusiastic. All departments worked together， and the people actively participated.”

Achieving the mission entailed numerous days and nights hard work. Yuan was always working on the front line. Every day， she led her team consisting of urban construction， the industry and commerce administration， traffic police， and community staff to the hygiene management sites. She focused on five major areas， including the overall environment， the suburb linking the urban and rural areas， infrastructure， farmers market， and small trading centers.

At every site， she tried to enhance the peoples awareness of hygiene. She talked to businessmen and residents， persuading them to live up to higher standards， cleaning the dirty places together with the hygiene workers along the way.

Thanks to her teams relentless efforts， the local attitude changed from resistance to cooperation. At last， they realized the significance of creating a better environment and many voluntarily participated in the program.

“Of course， there were challenges. The most difficult one was when I relocated a group of temporary sheds where migrant workers lived，” said Yuan. “Those sheds， which had a lot of garbage， formed a big hygiene and safety concern.”

At that time， the migrant workers strongly protested the relocation. They gathered outside the government building， voicing their anger. Under pressure， Yuan invited representatives into her office and talked with them patiently.

“After the talk， the representatives discovered that the relocation was actually in their interest， too. With their relocation， the whole citys environment could be improved， and they could move into the new communities built by the government. Their quality of life could be greatly improved，” she said.

“To be a good leader， you must have passion， responsibility and judgment，” she said， adding， “If I had not withstood the pressure and used a sound judgment， my later success would not have been possible.”

Caring for the people

“I worked as vice county magistrate in Zhenyuan for five years and was responsible for culture， education and hygiene work. Every week， according to the schedule， the county leaders would meet citizens and listening to their appeals. Many visitors demand to meet me，” she said.

“They said that even though they went into the government building in fury， after talking with the female vice magistrate and listening to her suggestions， their mood was better when they left，” she recalled.

Indeed， Yuan has a special charm， which inspires optimism and happiness in the people surrounding her.

“I am only an ordinary person who loves her job and wants to help others as much as possible. I just want to do something for the people，”said Yuan.

While in Zhenyuan she was in charge of culture， education and hygiene work， now in Qujing， she is responsible for economic work.

Qujing covers an area of 28，900 square km and has a population of 6.323 million people. As the origin of the Pearl River， the third longest river in China， the city boasts an amazing natural beauty and a rich local culture. During the reform and opening up， economic development has been a top priority for the city.

Facing the transition， Yuan expressed confidence in herself， noting， “I know I wont let the people down.”

This explains why she has always been so devoted to her work whatever position she has held. Her job at the Disabled Persons Federation in Puer entailed hard work， her passion and love for the job made her stay there for 10 years.

She had never imagined she would be promoted to vice magistrate of Zhenyuan from there， neither had she thought of being further promoted to vice mayor of Qujing and becoming the youngest vice mayor ever in the province.

Speaking of her career path， she said， “I always think， a sincere and simple person can achieve more. So whatever position you are in， just concentrate on your job and do your best. You will surely be noticed.”

“My 10 years work at the Disabled PersonsFederation brought me a feeling of gratitude. It made me grateful for life， and for what I already had，” she said.

The most touching part of the job was the cataract project that she worked on for many years.

“In the border areas， hygiene conditions are poor. Generally， people in those places with bad hygiene habits， strong ultraviolet light and high altitudes are more vulnerable to cataract problems. So a lot of local people in Zhenyuan are cataract patients. While I worked there， my colleagues and I helped these patients to regain vision，” said Yuan.

“At that time， doctors coming to do their surgery in our county were surprised to find there were translators beside the surgery table，”Yuan recalled with a smile. “Because many local people couldnt speak Mandarin， we sent translators according to their ethnic group.”

“After getting their vision back， they were so overwhelmed with happiness that they sang and danced around the doctors， which deeply moved the doctors and the working staff including me，” she said.

Indeed， attention to vulnerable groups shows the care of a nation， she said. While working in the federation， she often went to raise money from local companies. She persuaded them to support the disabled people and meanwhile establish their own companys image.

In fact， Yuans compassion and devotion is linked to her family education. She was born in a reputed and wealthy family in Mohei Town， Ninger. The town， known as an ancient tea-horse town， is a stop along the Ancient Tea-Horse Road that winds through Yunnan， Sichuan and Tibet to Southeast and South Asia.

“My grandma always taught us to have a kind heart， be nice to people and help those in need，” she said. To teach her descendants independence， Yuans grandma donated the family house to the local government. “My parents are both teachers. They have taught me to be a person of honor，” said Yuan

“I dont want to be a dragon lady. I just want to be a woman of value. A firm and persistent woman of value，” she said.