New rules on demolition issue
Source: Xinhua |
January 23, 2011, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
CHINA has issued new rules to put an end to forced demolitions in cities without due process and fair compensation, amid an increasing number of deadly property disputes occurring due to quick urbanization.
The State Council, China's Cabinet, published the regulation on expropriation and compensation of houses on state-owned lands on Friday. The new regulation took effect immediately.
The regulation targets disputes over house expropriation and demolition and strives to give equal consideration to both public interests and the rights of property owners, according to a statement jointly issued yesterday by the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.
No violence or coercion can be used to force homeowners to leave. Other measures, such as illegally cutting water and power supplies, are also forbidden in relocation work, the regulation said.
Beaten to death
In October, demolition workers broke into a house slated for demolition that belonged to a 54-year-old man in Shanxi Province. The owner, who had earlier refused to leave, was pulled from the house and beaten to death.
The regulation also states that land developers can not be involved in demolition and relocation procedures.
Links between demolition and developers' business interests had long been an important element fueling tension over land disputes, the joint statement said.
According to the regulation, the local government is to be in charge of land expropriation and compensation. They have the option to authorize other non-profit organizations to take over this work.
"Forced or violent demolitions, in many cases, were driven by commercial concerns," said Shen Kui, a law professor at Peking University. "By minimizing business interests in the expropriation procedure, the new regulation could effectively reduce these types of incidents."
Further, if the government can not reach an agreement on expropriation or compensation with homeowners, demolition can only be carried out after a court's review and approval, the regulation says.
The previous regulation on home demolition on urban lands, which went into effect in 2001, had authorized local governments to enforce demolition at their own will.
"The regulation does not say there will no longer be forced demolitions because there may be cases where homeowners abuse their rights to profiteer," Shen said.
However, when the local government has a stake in the process, such as when it is in charge of expropriation, a check and balance from courts could well reduce the number of arbitrary decisions, he said.
The new regulation also states that compensation for expropriated homes should be no less than the market price of similar properties at the time of expropriation.
Compensation has been a major concern during the drafting of the new regulation. It offers a new principle that the expropriation of homes should help improve, not impair, the living standards of the owners, the joint statement said.
Last March, two farmers in Jiangsu Province set themselves on fire, killing one and injuring the other, to protest a compensation plan they perceived as severely underpriced.
The new regulation includes use of market prices as a fairer gauge in determining compensation, and it is also in line with the provisions of the Property Law, which took effect in 2007, said Wang Liming, a professor at Renmin University of China.
The State Council, China's Cabinet, published the regulation on expropriation and compensation of houses on state-owned lands on Friday. The new regulation took effect immediately.
The regulation targets disputes over house expropriation and demolition and strives to give equal consideration to both public interests and the rights of property owners, according to a statement jointly issued yesterday by the Legislative Affairs Office of the State Council and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.
No violence or coercion can be used to force homeowners to leave. Other measures, such as illegally cutting water and power supplies, are also forbidden in relocation work, the regulation said.
Beaten to death
In October, demolition workers broke into a house slated for demolition that belonged to a 54-year-old man in Shanxi Province. The owner, who had earlier refused to leave, was pulled from the house and beaten to death.
The regulation also states that land developers can not be involved in demolition and relocation procedures.
Links between demolition and developers' business interests had long been an important element fueling tension over land disputes, the joint statement said.
According to the regulation, the local government is to be in charge of land expropriation and compensation. They have the option to authorize other non-profit organizations to take over this work.
"Forced or violent demolitions, in many cases, were driven by commercial concerns," said Shen Kui, a law professor at Peking University. "By minimizing business interests in the expropriation procedure, the new regulation could effectively reduce these types of incidents."
Further, if the government can not reach an agreement on expropriation or compensation with homeowners, demolition can only be carried out after a court's review and approval, the regulation says.
The previous regulation on home demolition on urban lands, which went into effect in 2001, had authorized local governments to enforce demolition at their own will.
"The regulation does not say there will no longer be forced demolitions because there may be cases where homeowners abuse their rights to profiteer," Shen said.
However, when the local government has a stake in the process, such as when it is in charge of expropriation, a check and balance from courts could well reduce the number of arbitrary decisions, he said.
The new regulation also states that compensation for expropriated homes should be no less than the market price of similar properties at the time of expropriation.
Compensation has been a major concern during the drafting of the new regulation. It offers a new principle that the expropriation of homes should help improve, not impair, the living standards of the owners, the joint statement said.
Last March, two farmers in Jiangsu Province set themselves on fire, killing one and injuring the other, to protest a compensation plan they perceived as severely underpriced.
The new regulation includes use of market prices as a fairer gauge in determining compensation, and it is also in line with the provisions of the Property Law, which took effect in 2007, said Wang Liming, a professor at Renmin University of China.
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