Draft amendment consecrates private property
(China Daily)
Updated: 2004-03-09 01:24

Wu Jianzhong, a lawyer with the Beijing Dacheng Law Firm, may soon have a new reason to raise his voice next time when he speaks for residents facing forcible relocation from their homes or land in the Chinese capital.

Wu's new enthusiasm is derived from the historic stipulation in the proposed Chinese constitutional amendment that "private property obtained legally shall not be violated."

He heard about the possibility on a television newscast Monday afternoon.

"Now that protection of private property is possibly going to be included in the Constitution -- the basic norm of conduct for all, real estate developers, as well as some government officials will have to change... their sometimes indifferent attitudes towards private belongings will be different," Wu said.

In recent years, forcible relocations of urban and rural dwellers to make room for office buildings and other projects have resulted in growing disputes between residents and developers, and Wu has been working to help his clients get a fair shake at compensation.

Wu is not the only one to cheer at the potential amendment, which is being discussed by nearly 3,000 national legislators at the Second Session of the 10th National People's Congress.

Wang Zhenmin, a law professor at the prestigious Tsinghua University said the draft amendment, if passed, will put private property on the same footing with public assets, will better safeguard lawful private property rights of Chinese citizens from public infringement.

Li Linkai, an NPC deputy from South China's Guangdong Province, said the proposed Constitution amendment will offer a more complete institutional guarantee on the protection of means of production and therefore stimulate private investment.

Li said the action will greatly reduce worries of private entrepreneurs and give them more confidence in the investment environment.

Deputy Zhu Qinglong, an entrepreneur from Anhui Province, said the draft is a "comforting pill" and pledged to increase investment in his high-tech business of auto-control system manufacturing.

Constitutional protections on legally accumulated wealth will greatly accelerate the development of non-State-owned economy, especially private businesses, said Li Wencheng, an NPC deputy from Henan Province.

While hailing the proposed amendment's proclamation that the country must compensate those whose property is expropriated,some NPC deputies said it must be made more explicit that such compensation should be fair and rational.

Deputy Chen Yaodong from East China's Zhejiang Province Monday said some government staff have used "expropriation for public interests'' as an excuse. They often fail to compensate the private property owners in a fair and acceptable way.

"If the constitutional amendment could make it clear that such a compensation should be made fairly, maybe a lot of corruption cases could be averted," he said.

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