ENGLISH EDITION OF THE WEEKLY CHINESE NEWSPAPER, IN-DEPTH AND INDEPENDENT
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My Life as a Demolisher
Summary:The author of The Demolishers’ Handbook says you can vacate villages without smearing people’s doors with excrement or putting snakes in their beds.

 

  
By Chen Anqing(陈安庆) and Tan Jun (谭君)
Nation, page 9
Issue No. 572, June 4, 2012
Translated by Song Chunling
Original article: [Chinese]


As we wander the main commercial area of Zhuzhou (株洲), a city of about one million in the south-central province of Hunan, Fang Qingming takes pride in pointing out the tall buildings that line the street.


"Look at the beautiful buildings in the Shimao plaza. It took us four or five years to demolish that area. As for that other plaza there, the people who used to live on the land on which it was built, now live in the new buildings. Every time I come here, I have a good feeling, a sense of achievement. I love my job."

Mr. Fang works for a law firm in Hunan's capital city of Changsha, he is also a professional demolisher who has six years’ experience with various companies in Hunan and in all aspects of the job from planning to final execution.

Against the background of numerous high-profile cases of violent forced demolitions, these demolition teams have been demonized, they now have a reputation for being evil and barbaric.

But, if we exclude those most egregious cases, the vast majority of demolition teams are simply made up of ordinary workers who are just doing their job. They include among their ranks engineers, accountants, quality surveyors and auditors.

Demolition involves complicated legal regulations from the central to municipal levels and the process is highly complicated, including ironing out differences between various parties, which often need the expertise of legal experts and other specialists such as engineers, certified public accountants and appraisers.

Demolishing as a Career
Demolition firms have to formulate a proposal which is acceptable to developers, the government and the owners of the properties so that houses can be demolished in the shortest time and the smoothest manner. Cases where this fails to take place and houses that are forcibly demolished without satisfying the rights of the property owners have proved to be one of the most contentious issues in Chinese society.

Su Xiangyang is a 62 year-old retired official who once held a senior position in Zhuzhou's real estate bureau. Mr. Su is now a big player in the world of Zhuzhou's demolishers.

When the first demolition company was established in Zhuzhou in 2004, Mr. Su was invited to join the company as an official consultant. Su has since been invited to lecture on demolition work at the various other demolition companies that later emerged. By 2012, there were five companies employing almost a hundred people in all.

Mr. Su also authored a 200-page book called The Demolishers’ Handbook.

One chapter of the book is titled "How to Enter Households," it includes a long list of phrases for greeting people and putting them at ease.

Demolishing companies normally follow a certain procedure once they've decided to take on a project. They first investigate the households, then draw up a demolition plan, they then post information about the compensation to be offered, assist with the application for the required demolition approval certificate and finally they knock down the houses.

The first step of investigating the household situation is fundamental - they need to acquire information about the structure of the dwelling, the house owners, their willingness to move and any special demands they may have in relation to compensation.

As Mr. Su puts it, "When it comes to earning your crust in this game, understanding people is more important than professional knowledge."

Property evaluation companies calculate the price of a house according to various factors such as the location, structure, size and furnishings.

"We will raise the price on the demand of the households if it’s too low.” says Su. "However the price cannot be raised too much, because the developers calculate according to the value of the housing, while the households care about the value of both the housing and the property."

In these cases, the local government often provides an extra "bonus compensation" of 30 percent.

One other solution that Mr. Su has come up with is to offer households replacement apartments that were bigger than where they had been living. Mr. Su used a rule of thumb that said the replacement housing should be bigger than the original apartment on a scale of about 1:1.3, so that if someone was having their 100sqm place knocked down, they be promised a 130sqm apartment.

Demolitions with Chinese Characteristics

In Mr. Su's opinion, the self-immolation that occurred during a forced demolition in Zhuzhou last year could have been avoided, though he also admitted that no demolition compensation plan was perfect.

Currently there are no regulations that cover "hidden compensation" that can include things such as new furniture and appliances for those who agree to move.

"This is what the policy-makers forgot," says Su.

When developers and property owners become bogged down in a stalemate, the demolition firms have to intervene. One method is to tackle the opposition of property owners on a case by case basis and use different strategies and incentives. The most notorious cases are where demolition companies go ahead without the consent of the owners or resort to intimidation or even violence. Though this is illegal, it is also commonplace.

If the house owners attempt to stand up for their rights, the demolishers would say "the land was never yours, it belongs to the state. You only have the right to use it."

If the owners still argue, the demolition workers suggest they think of the future. "All the commercial development is for the public benefit of the next generation."

Apart from households, Su also admits that they have to negotiate and talk with the developers as well. If the developers refuse to invest more money, the demolition company will have to persuade them to act fast as the price is increasing all the time.

When both sides refuse to give in, then the real hard work for the demolition team begins - demolishing the houses of a few households that agreed to leave early or of an influential resident, painting the Chinese character "demolish" (拆) on walls, or in dealing directly with people according to the tips contained in Su's handbook

Meanwhile, a group made up of officials from the various local government bureaus and departments will also come to offer incentives.

"Those who have more than one child without permission will be offered the opportunity to officially register their child. Those with war veterans in the family can get help from the Ministry of Civil Affairs. These officials are willing to satisfy almost any demand so long as people are willing to leave.

The Perfect Demolition

A smart demolisher should be able to avoid violent conflict with those with whom he is negotiating a settlement.

The violent forced demolitions that are often exposed by the media are normally a desperate last step and are often conducted by migrant workers who have been hired for the job.

Mr. Su also says he opposed various kinds of unscrupulous behavior including smearing doors with excrement, smashing holes in roofs, prying open doors and windows in order to allow better access to thieves or even putting snakes in someone’s bed.

Last year, the state council put a halt to "administrative forced demolitions" (行政强拆) has been cancelled and seeking court approval for a demolition is also difficult and is thus rarely used.

In his seven years in the industry, Fang has never taken part in a court-backed forced demolition. More than 40 documents need to be submitted, and the required record of more than three conversations with more homeowners is hard to obtain, especially when they refuse to communicate.

Fang says that working in demolition crew would be a hard job for those with no experience.

"We're that good that we even know how many times a house has been painted, we know how to calculate a price for them, how to pay a visit and talk to them, how to persuade them, it's a kind of skill."

In Zhuzhou, these demolition teams normally only charge about 2 percent of the total cost of demolition, this is a far cry from the 5 to 8 percent they should be making according to regulations put out by the housing bureau.

Fang also mentioned some of the "toughest rivals" he had met with.

"They are the polite ones that know all the regulations and policies as well as the value of their houses. How can you fool them when they know even more than you do?

The names used in this article are all pseudonyms.

This article was edited by Paul Pennay

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