Just a heap of rubble where people lived previously... For decades, the Western media have denounced the"abuse" surrounding these demolitions. I have talked with many Chinese who were relocated because their houses were destroyed. Hardly any of them complained, quite to the contrary. In general, they get an apartment of the same surface in a modern residential building.Having whole cities covered with old-style "hutong" neighborhoods might be picturesque, but is economically, socially and ecologically totally unsustainable. The only person I met who was really angry was the wealthy owner of an almost new house who got the same compensation as the owners of old houses in the same village.Of course there are cases of abuse. However, as a whole, this system works far better to provide the Chinese people with the kind of living standard they want than what exists in any comparable country in the world.
