Article: Economic experiment makes island of Hainan the Wild West of the new China.(Originated from INSIDE THE NEW CHINA: Fifth of six parts)

By Loretta Tofani

Knight-Ridder Newspapers

HAIKOU, China _ Yan Zhangbin had done well under China's socialist system _ a secure government job, free housing, free medical care.

He gave it all up and came to this favored city on the island of Hainan to try to strike it rich _ gambling his future on a kind of free-for-all capitalism rarely found elsewhere in Communist-led China.

``During the past six years, I earned more money here than if I had stayed on the mainland for 30 years,'' said Yan, a former journalist, looking back on his capitalist adventure.

As an experiment, the Communist government has allowed the island of Hainan to pursue ...

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