The construction of a 21-km-long concrete and marble dragon
along the ridge of a mountain near a national forest in central
China's Henan Province has become a controversial
national issue.
The Zulong Company has completed construction on the dragon's
29.9-meter-high head and 800 meters of its body at a cost of more
than 30 million yuan (US$3.9 million), with the final cost expected
to be?10 times that amount.
Company president Li Shumin said the monumental project would be
completed by 2009 in time to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the
founding of the People's Republic of China.
Critics of the project say it is a waste of money and will
damage the local environment, while supporters say it will attract
visitors and create jobs for local people.
Zulong's vice president, Li Xiong, said the company will
continue building the giant stone dragon and is determined to make
it a success despite the controversy
An online survey by the leading Chinese portal website Sina.com
shows more than 91 percent of over 65,500 respondents disapproved
of the dragon, which is said to be the longest in the country if
not the world.
The dragon snakes its way along the top of a ridge of Shizhu
Mountain, which was designated as a national forest park in 2005.
Along with its mammoth head and impressive, twisting length, the
dragon will form a wall nine meters high and six meters wide along
the backbone of the ridge.
Some 5.6 million pieces of white marble and gilded bronze are to
form the dragon's scales as a move that is "symbolic of the
country's 56 ethnic groups." Display rooms offering themes of
filial piety and patriotism are to be set up in the dragon's hollow
body.
For a fee, people will be able to have their names and messages
inscribed on the scales, and companies can advertise on the
dragon's head.
A Henan newspaper quoted an official with Xinzheng City as
saying that the dragon is a business project and has nothing to do
with the government.
But Li Xiong disputes this statement, saying: "How can this huge
project have nothing to do with the government? The lands belong to
the state, you know, if the government didn't approve it, how can
we build this dragon on it?"
The land used for construction is reported to be wasted land,
and he added that the government has even promised relocation
arrangements for the villagers living on the mountain, which
indicates the government's support for the project.
The director of the Xinzheng municipal?publicity department
strongly denied the reported involvement of the government. "The
government never invested a penny into this project. They told the
media that our government supports them and it's the government's
important project -- they are just using us to gain publicity to
attract further investments!"
However, on February 5, the stone dragon project was given
permission to build by Xinzheng City's Development and Reform
Commission and was submitted to provincial and national development
and reform commissions, according to Henan Business
Newspaper.
Exactly where the building funds came from is quite a mystery now.
A company official from the press department of Zulong told
Legal Evening News yesterday they have rejected any direct
investments. He said they have been developing a unique product for
the project, which they expect to sell, using the money they earn
as further investment toward the project.
His comments have contradicted previous statements made by the
company. Even the official website never mentioned the "product,"
but it did welcome foreign and domestic enterprises, social
organizations, venture companies, and funds.
The official also said the reported "30 million yuan" figure is
not correct, but he did not elaborate on the true figure.
The dragon project was first launched in 2002 by a returned
overseas Chinese but stalled after running short of funds. Zulong
Company was founded in October 2005 with a registered capital of 1
million yuan (US$129,381).
However, the government may now step in to decide the fate of
the dragon. Due to the media frenzy that followed public discovery
of the project, the provincial environmental protection bureau has
sent a team to inspect the construction site.
Li Shumin confessed to the media yesterday that the project
hasn't passed the examination of environmental authorities. If it
cannot pass the examination, it will be terminated immediately.
(Xinhua News Agency, China.org.cn by Zhang Rui March 28,
2007)
