Rebuilding after disaster

Three years ago on Thursday, we saw tears of despair. Wenchuan was hell on earth in the wake of the devastating tremor.

On Thursday, when Wenchuan commemorated the third anniversary of the May 12, 2008 earthquake, which killed more than 85,000, and celebrated the near-completion of rebuilding projects, we saw tears of different kinds - tears of sorrow for those who died mixed with tears of joy and gratitude and pride.

Amid the rubble, 12 days after the tremor flattened Wenchuan, Premier Wen Jiabao told United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon a new Wenchuan would arise in three years. We have now seen that honored, and honored very well. Exactly three years later, a reborn Wenchuan inspires rhetoric about "Chinese self-confidence" in the official media.

There are good reasons to be proud. The "near-completion" of the rebuilding process in a matter of three years would not have been possible were it not for the country's strong financial position. Accommodating the hundreds of thousands of victims alone was a daunting challenge, not to mention building brand-new townships from scratch. Efficiency is another thing worth bragging about. There are no comparable cases in sight when it comes to post-disaster rebuilding. All imperative needs appear to have been met. Better still, plenty of thought seems to have been given to those of tomorrow.

The "decisive triumph" of the rebuilding process, which Premier Wen described as "a miracle", is worth all the praise. And we, as a disaster-prone country, can derive plenty of lessons applicable to the future.

Many have pointed to "advantages of the system" as one of the key factors behind that success. In many ways that is indisputable. Few countries in today's world have a nationwide mobilization system as efficient as ours - the rebuilding process would have been much longer and protracted had it not been for the handsome input and one-on-one partnerships orchestrated by the central authorities.

The "miraculous" rebirth of Wenchuan will surely lend fresh credit to the nationwide mobilization mechanism, which is justifiably highlighted as the epitome of systematic advantages. There can be no doubt that the country's capability to mobilize and concentrate resources from across the country to achieve big goals is an advantage beyond the reach of many others. We share the popular understanding that the highly efficient centralized mobilization mechanism plus a strong political will is a formula for success in many undertakings, otherwise there would not be the tendency to prescribe the same for the country's uphill battles against corruption and food safety problems.

While tapping the constructive potential of the mobilization mechanism, misuse of public funds should be avoided. Precisely because of its effectiveness in achieving set goals, informed decisions are essential to make sure this powerful tool is used only for worthy causes and good governance with people's oversight is the only guarantee for informed decisions.

China Daily