In the name of renovation

Municipal authorities in China love to demolish. We aren't talking about digging up roads repeatedly, or incessantly reworking pavements that are already in pretty good shape. We're talking about demolition for "renovation".

In Nanjing, authorities have spread open a blueprint for large-scale "renovation" of "old and dangerous" housing, which provoked dozens of conservationists to launch a joint protest.

In Kashgar, the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, a plan for renovating one of the city's old residential districts is reportedly raising similar concerns about the city's sense of history.