Society

Developer told opposing govt 'evil'

By Wang Huazhong (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-10-16 08:03

BEIJING - A district Party chief in Chongqing municipality ordered a real estate developer to stop a project by threatening to crack down on the developer as if it were a gang, according to a voice recording released on Friday.

"Do you know the reason Chongqing cracked down on organized gangs? Do you know what is evil? Opposing the government is evil," Party secretary of Jiangjin district, Wang Yinfeng, can be heard telling the developer at the developer's office on Aug 5.

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In the recording, uploaded on the Internet, Wang asked the developer to stop a residential project and offered another piece of land for the project because he believed the building - at a planned 108 meters - would dwarf the government's office building behind it, block its view and ruin its feng shui.

A report by China Business News quoted the recording, in which the Party secretary asked the developer "Do you know feng shui or not? "

"Your building rising up at this place blocks the government's office building. This is yamen (a feudal Chinese word for a government office)."

"If you build your house, can we still work here? Your building means the whole district Party committee has to be relocated!"

After the developer refused to stop the project, Wang implied that a crackdown similar to the municipality's gang-sweeping operation might fall on people disobeying his orders.

Scores of Chongqing tycoons and developers have been sentenced to death or are serving jail terms for their roles in gangs after last year's massive gang-sweeping operation that had overwhelming public support.

The conversation was revealed to media by the developer earlier this month and the report immediately spread on the Internet.

On Oct 12, the district government's news office published a statement refuting the feng shui allegation, saying the building, situated at the axis of the city landscape, has blocked citizens' views.

Over the next two days, the district government held two news conferences stressing the report was "inconsistent with facts".

At one of the news conferences Wang denied his words about feng shui. He explained that the residential project had to be stopped because it is not in line with the Jiangjin district's latest urban planning, and promised compensation for those involved.

Believing he said nothing wrong, Wang also welcomed having the recording put online. On Thursday, the recording was put on the Internet.

China Daily's calls to Jiangjin district Party committee's publicity office went unanswered all Friday afternoon.

Office staff of the developer, Chongqing Kuntai Real Estate Company, refused to comment over the phone on Friday.

Ren Jin, law professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, said the official lacked basic governance know-how and his words go against the country's administrative laws.

"Disagreeing with the government's proposition cannot be called evil, which is a term for violating laws or ethics. The threats only tarnish the government's image and intensify conflicts," he said.