Property fight takes dark turn

Villagers in Fengtai district have accused "gangs," possibly hired by a construction company, of damaging two cars and intimidating them.

Over 100 residents of Shiliuzhuang village gathered yesterday morning in front of Nanyuan township government building, Fengtai district, with a Volkswagen Jetta with smashed windows, and three slashed tires belonging to a Volkswagen Santana.

Villager Zhou Jie told the Global Times that the cars were damaged before dawn on Friday, and alleged that gangs were responsible. He said that villagers were afraid for their safety.

The village, known as an urban village, is under redevelopment. Over 1,000 families have temporarily moved, leaving 100 families behind, said village head Xu Wanchao. Urban villages are those which were formerly in rural areas, but have now been surrounded by urban development.

The village was home to around 5,000 people, 2,000 of whom were farmers, according to Xu.

Shiliuzhuang is one of the 50 urban villages Beijing Municipal Government ordered to be redeveloped in 2010, reported the Legal Mirror.

The remaining villagers allege that the construction project did not go through official procedures. The most pressing issue is not the level of compensation, they say, but rather that the new property they will be given will not be able to be resold on the property market, as it will not have the correct certification.

Wang Zhenhua, secretary of the party committee of Nanyuan township, told the Global Times that there is no uniform policy when urban villages are transformed, because the particular situation is always different.

Commenting on the villagers allegations, secretary Wang said, "For high efficiency of the work, some procedures are being carried out simultaneously," without explaining clearly what the procedures were.

Zhou confirmed that those villagers who had moved had been given 1,500 yuan ($238) per month for three years, which has been paid already as a lump sum, but he thinks these residents have been deceived and they will only receive a "rural property," in which the property certificate is not recognized by the city government, and cannot therefore be bought or sold.

"Fengtai district government told us that redevelopment of urban villages should be discussed by the village committee and voted on by all villagers, and decisions made by the village, too," said Zhou. He said that Xu had said the village committee was following instructions from the district government.

However secretary Wang refuted Zhou's allegations.

"It's impossible for us to build rural property houses, and we are following national procedures for these cases," he said.

"We reported this to the city management department and Fengtai district government several times, because the construction was not officially approved, and we are often bothered by dust and noise," said Zhou.

Yesterday, five villagers, including Li Huanjun, a former cosmetics seller, talked to Nanyuan township officials.

"We were told that the case of the smashed cars would be dealt with quickly, and a meeting will be held to discuss the construction," she told the Global Times.

Wang Yuanyuan, vice director of the township said the police have began working on the case.

"Film of the cars from the villagers must be authenticated first before dealing with it," said Wang Yuanyuan.

Xu said that the villagers who had moved away were being temporarily housed in other accommodation, and were being given a monthly rent stipend.

When the village development is complete, each person will be allocated an average of 50 square meters.

The monetary compensation was lower than other nearby villages, explained Xu, because eventually villagers would be rehoused in a very good location, between the South Third and Fourth Ring Roads.