6) Compensation for Expropriation. Expropriation of collective- owned land
and the houses of urban and rural residents has a bearing on the immediate
interests of the people and is a general concern of the society. As it is, China
is a country with a huge population and insufficient cultivated land. At
present, the land retained for cultivation throughout the country only totals
1.83 billion mu (or 122 million hectares), with only 1.4 mu (or about 0.0933
hectares) per head, accounting for one-third of the world average level. As is
fixed in the Outlines of the Eleventh Five-Year Plan approved at the Fourth
Session of the Tenth National People's Congress, by the year 2010, the amount of
land retained for cultivation must be kept at 1.8 billion mu (or 120 million
hectares), which is a constraint figure, a base line that must not be exceeded.
Applying the most strict land administration system and, in particular,
effectively protecting the capital farmland are the most urgent and herculean
tasks confronting our country today. The draft property law explicitly
stipulates, "The State provides special protection for cultivated land through
strictly restricting the transformation of land for agriculture into land for
construction and keeping under control the total amount of land used for
construction. No entity shall expropriate collective-owned land by exceeding the
limits of power or in violation of the procedures as provided for by law." In
accordance with the Constitution, the draft property law stipulates that, for
public interests, land owned by collectives and the houses and other immovables
of the units and individuals may be expropriated within the limits of power and
according to the procedures as provided for by law. At the same time, the draft
provides for the principles for compensation for expropriations and the specific
items to be compensated for. With respect to the question of expropriation of
collective- owned land, the draft property law stipulates, "For expropriation of
collective-owned land, such fees shall be paid as compensations for the land
expropriated, subsidies for resettlement, compensations for the fixtures and the
young crops on land, and the premiums for social security of the farmers whose
land is expropriated shall be allocated in full, in order to guarantee their
normal lives and safeguard their lawful rights and interests. "This stipulation
reflects the principle of the Party and the State that compensation for
expropriation of land and for resettlement must be sufficient to guarantee that
the living standards of the farmers whose land is expropriated will not be
lowered and their livelihood will be ensured for a long time to come. On the
question of expropriation of the houses and other immovables of units and
individuals, the draft stipulates, " Compensation for resettlement shall be paid
to the units and individuals whose houses or other immovables are expropriated,
in order to preserve their lawful rights and interests; where the residential
unit of an individual is expropriated, his living conditions shall be
guaranteed." In view of the unbalanced development of different areas, the
specific compensation standards and measures shall be formulated in the relevant
laws such as the Land Administration Law in compliance with the principles for
compensation and the items to be compensated for, as prescribed in the draft
property law, and in light of the specific circumstances.
In view of the fact that in actual life compensations for expropriation are
not duly paid and that such compensations are misappropriated, the draft
property law expressly stipulates, "No unit or individual shall embezzle,
misappropriate, illegally share, withhold or pay in default, the compensations
for expropriation or other fees." Any unit or individual that violates this
stipulation shall bear legal liability in accordance with law.
In addition, the draft property law contains the following:
One, on the question of correct handling of adjacent relations, the draft
made stipulations governing matters that give rise to adjacent relations, such
as use of water, drainage, passage, ventilation and light, which will help
develop production, provide conveniences in people's lives, protect the rights
and interests of the adjacent obligees and promote harmony in the neighborhoods.
Two, on the question of security rights, on the basis of the Guaranty Law,
provisions on the property that can be used for providing guaranty are added in
the draft, which serves to further improves the guaranty system, in order to
promote financing and economic development.
Three, on the question of protection of property, the draft made
comprehensive stipulations governing the ways and means of protection of
property, and provides that any unit or individual that infringes on the
property right shall bear, apart from civil liability, administrative or
criminal liability according to law, thus improving the system for protection of
property.
And four, on the question of possession, the draft mainly provides for the
protection of possession and the liability for tort committed by illegal
possessors, to maintain public order and protect the lawful rights and interests
of the obligees.
Fellow deputies, you are requested to deliberate on the draft property law of
the People's Republic of China and the explanations given above.
