Half of tombs ordered demolished in Henan since rebuilt
By An Baijie, China Daily, February 20, 2013
After an uproar concerning Henan government’s forced relocation of family tombs to cemeteries, the central government passed a regulation banning civil affairs authorities from demolishing tombs. The earlier policy, which began in March 2012, led to the demolition of 2.34 million tombs by November for the purpose of “saving farmland,” most likely related to local governments’ reliance on land sales to meet their budgetary needs. Widespread internet criticism of the policy led to heavy media coverage, which in turn incited a policy change.
Summary by Amanda Brown-Inz. See Article for full text.
