Netizens react against support for forced relocation
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Chinese Internet users have reacted fiercely to a letter posted online Tuesday which supported the policy of forced relocation and sympathized with two county officials recently dismissed in southeast China.
Three residents set themselves on fire last month in a protest against local government pressuring them to sell their home so it could be demolished to make way for the construction of a bus station in Yihuang County, southeast Jiangxi Province.
One died and the other two were severely burnt. As a result of the incident, the county's Party chief Qiu Jianguo and the county chief Su Jianguo were removed from their posts Sunday.
The letter, written by "Huichang" who identified himself as a government official of Yihuang on caing.com, argued for the two dismissed, saying that forced relocation was "necessary" for China's booming urbanization which had "benefited every Chinese."
After China's real estate market was opened in the late 1990s, local governments were allowed to sell land use rights to property developers who had since frequently conflicted with residents as they tried to shift them to make way for construction projects.
Netizens immediately responded overwhelmingly opposing Huichang's comments.
"The country's development should not be based on constructing new buildings," wrote a commentary posted by "dangzi" at xinhuanet.com, "forced relocation is blocking China's further development."
Forced relocation is the result of "big government," which often ignores private property rights and due process of law, wrote Si Weijiang, in his blog.
However, columnist Tao Yong wrote in his blog that freedom of speech allowed everyone to openly express his opinion.
"It's important for officials to directly address the public," Tao wrote at caing.com, though he himself was still challenging the legitimacy of government's forced relocation on local residents.
"That official has the right to speak out and defend his view", he wrote.
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