Tofu-dreg project
{{short description|Chinese phrase for a poorly constructed building}}
{{Update|date=March 2023}}
{{Infobox Chinese
| p = dòufu zhā gōngchéng
| j = dau6 fu6 zaa1 gung1 cing4
| c = 豆腐渣工程
| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|d|ou|4|f|u|5|-|zh|a|1|-|g|ong|1|ch|eng|2}}
| ci = {{IPAc-yue|d|au|6|-|f|u|6|-|z|aa|1|-|g|ung|1|-|c|ing|4}}
| w = tou4-fu cha1 kung1-ch'eng2
| y = dauh-fuh jā gūng-chìhng
| gr = dowfu ja gongcherng
}}
"Tofu-dreg project" ({{zh|s=豆腐渣工程}}) is a phrase used in the Chinese-speaking world to describe a very poorly constructed building, sometimes called just "Tofu buildings". The phrase was coined by Zhu Rongji, the former premier of the People's Republic of China, on a 1998 visit to Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province to describe poorly built levees in the Yangtze River.{{Cite web|last=Cary|first=Eve|title=China's Dangerous Tofu Projects|url=https://thediplomat.com/2012/02/chinas-dangerous-tofu-projects/|access-date=2021-11-20|website=thediplomat.com|language=en-US}} The phrase is notably used referring to buildings that collapsed in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake disaster,{{Cite book|last=Shuk-ting|first=Kinnia Yau|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yKZEAgAAQBAJ&dq=tofu-dreg+construction&pg=PP1|title=Natural Disaster and Reconstruction in Asian Economies: A Global Synthesis of Shared Experiences|date=2013-12-05|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-1-137-36416-6|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=墨西哥地震學校倒塌 豆腐渣工程核准人判208年 {{!}} 國際 {{!}} 中央社 CNA|url=https://www.cna.com.tw/news/aopl/202107160303.aspx|access-date=2022-01-18|website=www.cna.com.tw|date=16 July 2021 |language=zh-Hant-TW}}{{Cite web|last=|title=糗！正恩建設是「豆腐渣工程」 強風一來屋頂直接被吹翻 {{!}} ETtoday國際新聞 {{!}} ETtoday新聞雲|url=https://www.ettoday.net/news/20211230/2157961.htm|access-date=2022-01-18|website=www.ettoday.net|date=30 December 2021 |language=zh-Hant}}{{Cite web|title=20秒害死502人：26年前的豆腐渣工程，成为韩国人永远的痛_湃客_澎湃新闻-The Paper|url=https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_12163299|access-date=2022-01-18|website=www.thepaper.cn}}{{Cite web|title=新加坡惊现建筑"豆腐渣"工程|url=http://news.nanyangpost.com/2016/09/25_25.html|access-date=2022-01-18|website=南洋视界}}{{Cite web|last=新加坡眼|date=2016-06-19|title=新加坡也有豆腐渣工程，倒下的瞬间，太吓人了！|url=https://www.yan.sg/taixiarenle/|access-date=2022-01-18|website=新加坡眼|language=zh-CN}} and the Bangkok Audit Office skyscraper collapse initiated by aftershocks from the March 2025 Myanmar earthquake over 1000km away, which was constructed with poor construction techniques and materials.{{Cite web |last=Colville |first=Alex |date=2025-04-02 |title=Deadly Blunders in Bangkok |url=https://chinamediaproject.org/2025/04/02/deadly-blunders-in-bangkok/ |access-date=2025-04-03 |website=China Media Project |language=en-US}}
In China, the term tofu dregs (the pieces left over after making tofu) is widely used as a metaphor for shoddy work, hence the implication that a "tofu-dreg project" is a poorly executed project.{{Cite news |last=Lu |first=Alan |date=April 1, 2025 |title=China muzzles online debate on construction standards after Bangkok building collapse |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/china/2025/04/01/china-censors-online-debate-bangkok-collapse/ |access-date=April 3, 2025 |work=Radio Free Asia}}
According to Chinese architect Li Hu, tofu-dreg projects in China are vastly outnumbered by buildings without construction flaws. Li said that in most cases, ill-constructed buildings do not collapse but merely have a reduced lifespan or leakages.{{Cite book|last1=Rizzardi|first1=Pier Alessio|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m11wDwAAQBAJ&dq=tofu+dreg&pg=PA294|title=The Condition of Chinese Architecture|last2=Hankun|first2=Zhang|date=2018|publisher=TCA Think Tank|isbn=978-1-9164537-0-8|language=en}}
2008 Sichuan earthquake
Image:Sichuanearthquake Jiangyou pic9.jpg was among the many schools in the disaster region that suffered heavy structural damage.]]
{{main|2008_Sichuan_earthquake#Collapse of schoolhouses{{!}}Collapse of tofu-dregs schoolhouses in the 2008 Sichuan earthquake}}
During the 2008 Sichuan earthquake, many schoolhouses collapsed; resulting in the death of students. These buildings have been used to exemplify tofu-dreg projects. The collapses were linked to allegations of corruption in the construction of Chinese schools.
{{Cquote|…School construction is the worst. First, there's not enough capital. Schools in poor areas have small budgets and, unlike schools in the cities, they can't collect huge fees, so they're pressed for money. With construction, add in exploitation by government officials, education officials, school managers, etc. and you can imagine what's left over for the actual building of schools. When earthquake prevention standards are raised, government departments, major businesses, etc. will all appraise and reinforce their buildings. But these schools with their 70s-era buildings, no one pays attention to them. Because of this, the older school buildings are suffer[ing] from inadequate protection while the new buildings have been shoddily constructed.
|4=A construction engineer using the pseudonym "Book Blade" ({{lang|zh-CN|书剑子}}){{cite web|title=A Construction Engineer's Thoughts on the Sichuan Earthquake|publisher=China Digital Times|date=May 22, 2008|url=http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/05/a-construction-engineers-thoughts-in-the-sichuan-earthquake}}}}
On May 15, 2008, Geoffrey York of The Globe and Mail reported that the shoddily constructed buildings are commonly called "tofu buildings" because builders cut corners by replacing steel rods with thin iron wires for concrete reinforcement; using inferior grade cement, if any at all; and using fewer bricks than they should. One local was quoted in the article as saying that "the supervising agencies did not check to see if it met the national standards."{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080515.CHINASIDE15/TPStory/TPInternational/Asia/ |title=Why China's buildings crumbled Survivors blame corruption, shoddy construction and cost cutting for the collapse of so many 'tofu buildings' – and even state media outlets are asking questions |last=York |first=Geoffrey |date=May 15, 2008 |work=The Globe and Mail |access-date=February 26, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010211551/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080515.CHINASIDE15/TPStory/TPInternational/Asia/ |archive-date=October 10, 2008 }}
The state-controlled media has largely ignored the tofu-dregs schoolhouses, under directives from the propaganda bureau's instructions. Parents, volunteers, and journalists who have questioned authorities have been intimidated or arrested.Cara Anna, [https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-06-15-1610979613_x.htm Sensitive China quake photo removed], Associated Press via USA Today, 6/14/08. Retrieved 6/29/12Lee, Diana and agencies (February 10, 2010), [http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=13&art_id=94377&sid=27014966&con_type=3&d_str=20100210&sear_year=2010 Fury at jail for quake activist] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604065648/http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=13&art_id=94377&sid=27014966&con_type=3&d_str=20100210&sear_year=2010 |date=June 4, 2011 }}, The Standard{{cite web |url=http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/66524 |title=Press Release: Family Visits Still Denied to Sichuan School Teacher Punished after Quake-Zone Visit| website=Human Rights in China|date=2008-07-29|accessdate=2008-10-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109000918/http://www.hrichina.org/public/contents/66524 |archive-date=2009-01-09 }}{{cite web|url=https://www.hrichina.org/en/content/220|title=Sichuan Teacher, Liu Shaokun, was Released to Serve his Reeducation-Through-Labor Sentence Outside of Labor Camp|website=Human Rights in China|date=2008-09-26|access-date=2023-05-20|archive-date=2023-05-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230520223756/https://www.hrichina.org/en/content/220|url-status=dead}} To quash the issue, riot police officers have broken up protests by parents, cordons have been set up around the schools in question, and reportage simply stopped.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/24/world/asia/24quake.html|title=China Presses Hush Money on Grieving Parents|work=The New York Times|date=July 24, 2008|first=Edward|last=Wong|access-date=April 22, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416151305/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/24/world/asia/24quake.html|archive-date=April 16, 2009|url-status=live}}
==References==
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Category:Building and structure collapses in China