Tuesday, April 3, 2007

Couple Loses Property Rights Battle in China

A resilient Chinese couple has lost a three year battle to remain in their home, the last of 280 buildings on a site that was claimed for redevelopment.

"This is not an individual case, it concerns the rights of all those Chinese who say their homes were demolished. You are the people's heroes!" declared one anonymous posting on the Yangcheng Evening News' Web site.

The house was referred to by state media and Web commentators as a "nail house" because it stuck up like a nail that couldn't be pulled out."


Couple's Home Razed After Three-Year Fight

"Property disputes and illegal land grabs have accelerated in recent years as China's economy expands at double-digit rates and farmland is gobbled up for industrial parks and skyscrapers.

Government officials often have sided with developers, touching off riots and protests."


Why does that sound so familiar?

Photo from the New York Times.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

There is an old proverb (Japanese, I believe) that says, "The nail that sticks up gets hammered down"!

In this case it's the "nail house" that gets torn down!

It's a crushing blow to lose one's home but good luck to that Chinese family who fought the good fight......hoping that they might build a new life full of good luck and blessings!

Anonymous said...

In New York, they're known as "architectural holdouts."