The China Elections and Governance website has translated an article from Southern Weekend about changes in the focus of peasants’ activism in rural China:
“Relying mainly on a recent Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) study, this article describes how the focus of peasant activism has moved from tax disputes to property rights, particularly in eastern areas of China, where urbanization has encroached on farmland, and where local governments are eager to make up for tax shortfalls with lucrative land sales.
The author often quotes the leader of the CASS study, professor Yu Jianrong, who believes that Chinese law must be revised to give peasants more control over their land, and who does not believe that rural migration to cities alone will solve the problem. Mr. Yu recommends an overhaul of China’s land ownership laws.”
The full translation is here.
The China Elections site also has posted a lengthy analysis of the Huang Jingao case.
