Simplify the red and white affairs and lighten the burden on the villagers

"in recent years, the standard of living has improved a lot, but the red and white affairs have also gone up with the ceremony, and the villagers are overwhelmed." At the brigade site of Dongwangguan Village, Jingzhong Town, Linzi District, Zibo City, Shandong Province, villager Cui Xingming said while rubbing mud on his hands.

As soon as he mentioned the gift, the suntanned farmer calculated an account for the reporter. In the village, the gift was two or three hundred yuan at a time, at least two or three thousand yuan a year. "this is the delivery of two or three thousand jin of grain. Do you feel distressed or not?"

But now the villagers of Dongwangguan Village are relaxed. How can thousands of years of customs be changed? "the villagers were disgusted from the bottom of their hearts and opposed to casual gifts, but no one was willing to stand out for fear of losing face." Yuan Hong, the village director, said that with the promotion and guidance of the government, the villagers went down the pole.

The year before last, Linzi District carried out the "Rural Customs change Project". 432 villages in the district set up a red and white council, which was handled by a standard throughout the process of red and white business. Dongwangguan Village responded to the call in the district, the implementation of marriage Jane, with the gift of 50 yuan capped, no longer eat running water seats.

As a member of the red and white council of the village, Cui Xingming also took the lead to do the marriage for his son and keep everything simple. On the wedding day, relatives and friends gathered together for 10 tables, and the villagers no longer served dinner. The loudspeaker in the village also informed the villagers not to eat running water mats, and the Red and White Council supervised them at the scene. "now that we get married, the villagers symbolically wish me a little money, so that the marriage will be lively and romantic will not be wasted." Cui Xingming said.

Talking about holding weddings for the villagers, Liu Xiuming, director of the village spiritual civilization construction office of the Sanlihe Street Office in Jiaozhou City, talked endlessly: "now no matter who gets married in the village, they use three cars-- the village secretary's car to pull the bridegroom and the village director's car to pull the bride and groom. And one is used for camera, and the car is free." Those who get married are all cadres of the two village committees. In Jiaozhou, the red and white affairs of the village are all taken care of by the Red and White Council, and the extravagant atmosphere of ostentation and extravagance and obsolete habits are gone.

Combined with the reality of rural areas, Shandong has incorporated the change of customs into the village rules and regulations, and regarded the construction of the Red and White Council as an important starting point and a key task in the work of changing customs. The Red and White Council is composed of people who are highly respected, enthusiastic in service, fair and just, advocate thrift, and have certain etiquette skills, and help the masses handle red and white affairs free of charge in accordance with unified standards, procedures and ceremonies.

At present, 86000 red and white councils have been established in the province, with a coverage rate of 67%. By the end of 2016, Shandong Province will generally establish and improve the Red and White Council.

According to a registration form for the management of the village, the cost of a recent funeral ceremony held by Jane in the village totaled 890 yuan. In the past, incense sacrifices, hired opera troupes, banquets... Spending at least 10,000 yuan is not a small burden on ordinary rural families.

Today, the master of mourning obeys the red and white council, distributes wreaths, wears black gauze and corsage, and changes from kneeling to bowing, not only preserving the due ceremony, but also relieving the villagers who have lost their loved ones from physical suffering. In Linzi, a funeral costs only 1000 yuan, and the funeral time is reduced from three days to one day. "I can no longer see these old rules and habits of delivering soup and plates, and the superstition is gradually broken." Liu Xiuming believes that this is more educational for children.

With the continuous progress of the work of changing customs and customs, the economic burden of the peasant masses has been significantly reduced, and the social atmosphere has also been improved. it has gradually become the consensus of the villagers to provide generous care and thin burial. At present, the satisfaction with the change of customs among rural people in Shandong has reached 94.2%.