The Associated Press reports that Beijing officials are denying that 1.5 million people will be displaced from their homes because of new construction by the time the city hosts the 2008 Summer Olympic Games.
Sui Zhenjiang, director of the city’s construction committee, told a news conference Wednesday, “the relocation in the city is a gradual process and it’s hard to count a total number. But the 1.5 million figure is definitely wrong.
According to a report issued in June by the Geneva-based Center on Housing Rights and Evictions, residents were forced to move with little notice and poor compensation, as Beijing rebuilds itself for the Olympic Games, reports the Associated Press.
Sui said that 40,000 people had been relocated yearly, and about 2,000 were moved to build new venues for the Games. He said most residents were content with compensation, adding that 16,000-17,000 “affordable” houses had been built in the city of 15 million. He said, “most people being relocated are satisfied. There are only a few cases of dissatisfaction and we have the legal procedure to resolve such problems”.
Sui said the city was “protecting historic” areas and care was taken to maintain the neighbourhood’s character.
