MCC Partner Celebrates 15 Years of Work in China

Mennonite Central Committee
Saturday, 27 May 2000

WASHINGTON -- Very early every morning, one child after another slips out of their homes and joins the procession over the mountain to school. After a full morning of classes, they begin the one-and-a-half hour trek back to their homes. But for these children from the southern Chinese province of Guizhou it is a marked improvement from just two years ago, when they had no school at all.

Their school was built through the joint efforts of an unlikely partnership, which includes Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), the Chinese and Canadian governments and the Amity Foundation, a Chinese humanitarian agency with Christian roots. The five-year partnership began in 1998 as an attempt to alleviate poverty in some of China's most impoverished rural areas. Edgar Metzler, MCC's director of international programs, said the project represents a "unique challenge for MCC," as it involves government and non-governmental organizations working together on a large scale.

Metzler was one of several MCC representatives on hand to celebrate the Amity Foundation's 15th anniversary last month in Nanjing, China. Participants for the anniversary event came from 20 countries.

Myrrl Byler, director of China Educational Exchange, a teacher-exchange program supported by MCC and a consortium of four Mennonite mission boards, has observed Amity's work over the years. Byler has watched Amity grow and seen its distinctive work in China. "There are very few non-profit organizations in China interested in helping the poorest of the poor. Amity allows Chinese Christians to better respond to needs in their society."

The organization increasingly partners with local congregations for various projects. Amity has expanded beyond an initial focus on education and small development projects in eastern China to a more comprehensive rural development program.

Despite an increase in prosperity in many Chinese cities over the past 20 years, many Chinese have been left behind. In Puding County, Guizhou, where the children's school is located, per capita income is a mere $55 per year.

The Chinese government estimates that 60 million people live in desperate poverty, many in remote, mountainous areas in western China. Consequently, efforts such as this joint project are looked upon favorably by local officials.

A spirit of cooperation with the Chinese government is in marked contrast to many in the United States who prefer to isolate the country because of political or ideological differences. These differing points of view were especially pronounced during the recent debate over approval of normal trade relations for China. [Normal trade relations was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in late May and will soon be voted on by the Senate.]

Byler recently joined 20 other religious leaders urging the United States to support normal trade relations. In a letter to Congress they wrote, "The gradual opening of trade, investment, travel and exchange between China and the rest of the world has led to significant, positive changes for human rights and religious freedom in China."

Citing his experiences living in and traveling in China for more than 13 years, he added: "China-bashing today is extremely popular, but unfortunately gives only a limited picture. China is a huge country, and very complex," he explained. "In the last 20 years, there have been significant gains in personal freedom and economic prosperity for the vast majority of people. As China is brought more and more into the world community, the better the chances for continuing such changes will be."

For more information, or to contact Mennonite Central Committee, see their website at: www.mcc.org