Yi people construct their homeland with high and vigorous spirit. It not only has made the economy and culture of their homeland greatly developed, but also has made the Yi people's regions change everyday. After the People's Republic of China was established, Chinese Communist Party and People's Government carried out the policy of Minority Autonomous in minority regions. They successively established three autonomous prefectures, 19 autonomous countries and 260 Minority Towns in 60 countries of Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces in Yi inhabited areas or in the areas inhabited with other ethnic groups. Since tens of years, lots of irrigation works

Photo by Huang Pingshan

have been established in Yi inhabited areas. Undoubtedly, this action has made a profound progress in agriculture and farming in those regions. Some trunk lines' opening to traffic, such as the Cheng-Kun Railway and Nan-Kun Railway etc., have entirely changed the history of traffic in Yi inhabited areas. Accordingly, the business, foreign trade and tourist trade have had a flourishing development, and a great change has taken place in fields of finance, culture, education medical, and sanitation. A set of labor-mine enterprises and steel bases have been grown up successively in Yi regions. And also a set of snappy young scholars of Yi and lots of artists, such as litterateurs, show-folks and singers, have fully shown their talents in stage at home or outside. The Yi Study has become a special subject that pay more attention to the reality study in history and culture of Yi. The study of Yi has gone abroad. More and more people both domestic and overseas pay more attention to the study in a good many of domains of Yi, such as politics, economy, history, culture and art etc..

　　At the same time, ten thousands of cadres of Yi have rapidly grown up and made progress; hundreds of Yi students have received the higher education; the number of Yi students ,which have gained the doctorial degree and master degree, has increased greatly. The living standard and qualities of Yi people have been greatly improved. The status of Yi has experience a tremendous change!

Circumstances of Yi in Autonomous Regions of China