Three Gorges Project Results in More Evictions, Land Scandals, and Corruption Cases

January 3, 2006

The Chinese government's Three Gorges Project has led to the forced eviction of residents in Shengquan village, Chongqing municipality, according to a December 2 report by Radio Free Asia. Construction on the massive hydroelectric dam project began in 1993 and should be completed by 2009. Local government officials issued eviction orders on December 1, giving villagers seven days to complete procedures for temporary relocation. Villagers complained that government agents began shutting off their water supply and blocking streets as early as November 30, to force them to relocate. In addition, villagers allege that the compensation and resettlement terms offered to them are unreasonable, and that the government offers higher amounts to those with an urban household registration ("hukou") than those with a rural hukou.

The Chinese government's Three Gorges Project has led to the forced eviction of residents in Shengquan village, Chongqing municipality, according to a December 2 report by Radio Free Asia. Construction on the massive hydroelectric dam project began in 1993 and should be completed by 2009. Local government officials issued eviction orders on December 1, giving villagers seven days to complete procedures for temporary relocation. Villagers complained that government agents began shutting off their water supply and blocking streets as early as November 30, to force them to relocate. In addition, villagers allege that the compensation and resettlement terms offered to them are unreasonable, and that the government offers higher amounts to those with an urban household registration ("hukou") than those with a rural hukou.

Based on information from the official Xinhua news agency, the People's Daily reported that the government began its latest stage of land and water clearance for the Three Gorges Project on December 1. The report notes that the Three Gorges Project will require the resettlement of 1.13 million people before completion. A November 16 Xinhua report, also available on the People's Daily Web site, notes that the cost so far of building the Three Gorges Project has totaled 130 billion yuan (about $16.11 billion), including funds set aside to restructure local industry and to help resettle firms, migrants, and laid-off workers. By July 2005, the portion of these funds allocated for restructuring and resettlement totaled 42.9 billion yuan (about $5.3 billion), according to a September 4 report. Corruption among local land officials has been a continuing problem. The Beijing News revealed that between 1993 and 2004, 327 cases of illegitimate use of resettlement funds were found in Chongqing municipality and Hubei province. Of the 369 officials accused and "seriously punished" for embezzlement, 23 were officials at the county level who embezzled more than 55.79 million yuan (about $6.79 million) in subsidies that should have gone to displaced migrants.

On December 5, the China Daily released an English language report on "the biggest corruption case of its kind involving the [Three Gorges] project." The case involved the embezzlement of 2.81 million yuan (about $35,000) by Du Jiang, head of the Farmland Protection Section of the Land and Resources Bureau in Wushan county, Chongqing municipality. According to an article on the China Court Network, the Chongqing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court tried Du on July 12. Xinhua carried the Chinese language report on his conviction and death penalty sentence, with a two-year reprieve, one day after the court announced its verdict on September 29. The December 5 article quotes Xia Kailiang, Deputy Director of the Supervision Office of the State Council's Three Gorges Construction Committee, as insisting that "corruption and funds' embezzlement has been minimal" compared to the large amount of investment in the Three Gorges Project. Despite Xia's characterization of the corruption as "minimal," criminal punishments for official graft related to the project have been severe in several cases, including Du's. Beijing News noted that Wang Sumei of the Resettlement Bureau of Wanzhou district, Chongqing municipality, embezzled more than 1.3 million yuan (about $157,195) and received a sentence of life imprisonment. Huang Faxiang, former Director of the Land and Resources Bureau of Fengdu county, Chongqing municipality, was executed after being convicted of embezzling more than 12 million yuan (about $1.45 million).

Compensation for evictions and requisitions remains a contentious issue. In March 2004, the National People's Congress amended Article 10 of the Chinese Constitution to require that the government pay compensation when it expropriates land. The CECC notes in its analysis of the 2004 Amendments to the Chinese Constitution that the new language leaves the amount of compensation undefined. An Opinion Guiding Urban Demolition and Relocation Compensation, issued by the Ministry of Construction in 2003 and effective as of January 1, 2004, strongly suggests that compensation be based on market value, but the RFA report shows that Shengquan villagers received less than half the estimated value of their homes.

Experts at a June 21, 2004, CECC Roundtable on Property Seizure in China: Politics, Law, and Protest confirmed that the rapid pace of development and the high value of land in China have continued to fuel corruption and abuse in land deals. Chinese leaders have issued numerous regulations and circulars prohibiting violence, intimidation, and other abusive tactics to relocate farmers and urban residents and make way for new developments. In June 2004, the State Council issued a Notice on Controlling the Scope of Housing Demolition and Relocation in Cities and Towns and Tightening Up Demolition and Relocation Management and urged the prohibition of "methods such as cutting off electricity, gas, or heat, blocking traffic, and other tactics to force residents subject to demolition to move." In August, a Shanghai court sentenced to death two employees of a demolition and relocation company for violent evictions. According to a March 8 China Daily article, the Shanghai municipal government also announced that it will bring criminal charges against those found to cut off power, water, or gas to homes in order to encourage residents to move out.

More information on Forced Evictions and Land Requisitions is available in Section V(f) of the CECC 2004 Annual Report.