Reform promotes stability
At a seminar called "China's demolition: balance between executive power and judicial power" held in Beijing on September 4, a large number of scholars and legal department staff discussed demolition in the presence of administrative intervention, justice and other issues. Topics such as land acquisition and demolition were mainly debated.
In the past, only officials and scholars attended such seminars. However, at the meeting there were 60 to 70 participants from households or units that had been relocated because of building demolitions, most of whom came from comparatively developed provinces such as Jiangsu, Shandong and Hebei. As cases of unease triggered by land acquisition have grown in number recently, scholars pointed out that the problems had much to do with land ownership, and that land reform is urgently needed.
According to Xie Xue, professor with the School of Politics and International Relations at Tongji University, in the process of urbanization there will always be cases of the government fighting with farmers for land. If the farmers do not have ownership, they will have no say in the negotiations and suffer losses.
Land reform must be carried out smoothly, said Dang Guoying. The government should establish an organized land management system and strengthen the management of each segment in land circulation, he also said.
Marketization for reform
Though it is agreed that land reform must be carried out as soon as possible, Xie Xue warned that reform through marketization must be performed on the basis of complete identification of land, and on laws that protect the property rights of farmers.
When it comes to pilot projects of land reform, the central government must always proceed with caution, he said.
All pilot projects provide valuable experience for further reforms, Dang Guoying said. As the current land system is already a source of dispute, it must be improved with the goal of building a harmonious society.
According to Dang, marketization is the general direction of the land reforms. With more support measures coming out, it is hoped that market principles in land transactions will be adopted widely.
