National

Regional

Taiwan, HK, Macao

Special Coverage

Focus

Society

Profiles

Residents protest forced relocation

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-08-12 11:40

About 30 residents protested in front of the China Central Television (CCTV) building yesterday, demanding higher compensation for being forced out of their homes in order for CCTV to create a public green space at its new headquarters.

The residents gathered near the futuristic CCTV building around 8:35 am. They put up posters calling for more compensation and protesting their "forced relocation" by China's largest state broadcaster.

Police officers eventually persuaded the protestors to put away their signs by 9:30 am.

Talks with the community management office stalled at the outset when residents insisted that journalists be present; CCTV objected.

The 15-story, 11-year-old building, adjacent to the burnt-out CCTV structure, used to house at least 100 households.

It was slated for demolition to make way for public green space at CCTV's new headquarters complex, but some residents felt the compensation was too low and refused to move out. They were offered just over 10,000 yuan ($1,462) per sq m.

They say the market price for real estate in the area, at the heart of Beijing's central business district, is at least twice the compensation offer.

Beijing-based lawyer Zhou Lei said the residents should appeal to the Beijing municipal commission of housing and urban-rural development for more compensation if the two sides cannot agree.

According to law, residents have to move out once the government issues a "permit for relocation".

The maximum period to find a new place and negotiate compensation is one and a half years.

About the broadcaster:

Nancy Matos is a foreign expert at China Daily Website. Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Nancy is a graduate of the Broadcast Journalism and Media program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Her journalism career in broadcast and print has taken her around the world from New York to Portugal and now Beijing. Nancy is happy to make the move to China and join the China Daily team.