Demolitions and relocations enforced by local governments have resulted in more forceful and brutal tactics, finds 2016 Annual China House Demolition and Relocation Report released by Peking University Law School and Beijing Cailiang Law Firm. The situation has deteriorated as local governments use legal ambiguities to evade responsibilities, making restrictions on administrative intervention meaningless.
Amplified by ten violent demolition cases in 2016, the report points to worsening problems including
- ineffective de-stocking policies in hot spot cities, causing a rebound in the number of demolitions and relocations
- a tendency of local governments making subordinate units, such as street offices and grassroots autonomous organisations, scapegoats for forceful implementation of demolitions, as a counter measure against legal sanctions
- lack of sufficient authority of local courts and inability to swiftly order compensation for citizens filing suits against local governments, resulting in a higher tendency of victims resorting to violence
The report hopes that legislation on protecting property rights would take concrete effect in the coming year, and suggests further institutional improvements and tightening of restrictions.