In the past month, about 40,000 farmers in China’s northeast Heilongjian Province started a movement to reclaim farm land that was illegally embezzled by the local government. The overseas China Transitional Government said it supported the movement and called on all Chinese farmers to protect their own rights.
The movement involves about 40,000 farmers from 72 villages around Fujing City, Heilongjiang Province. The farmers started with the impeachment of the regime’s appointed village head and elected a new leader. Under the new leadership, villagers took back about 100,000 hectares of land, and subdivided the land among them.
An Epoch Times reporter interviewed the China Transitional Government preparatory committee spokesman Mr. Wu Fan on December 31, 2007. Wu said he expresses his “highest tribute to the farmers for their bold and brave action to protect their rights,” and commended the farmers’ action and its profound meaning in promoting the democratic movement and people’s self-determination in China.
Brave and Daring Act
During the movement, villagers in Changchunlin Village demanded the return of 4,000 hectares embezzled by the government.
On December 19, the local regime sent hundreds of armed police and mobsters to quell the movement in Changchunlin Village. Despite the imminent threat, the villages were not afraid but remained determined and picked up clubs and harrows for a fight. With unprecedented courage and momentum, the farmers successfully eliminated the local regime’s arrogant gang.
In the following ten days, representatives, one from each household of the village, worked from dawn to dusk to account for the land that was taken and reassigned it to each family.
Currently, the local authority has not given consent to what the villagers did. The new village leader Zhang Wenshuan told Epoch Times that over 2,000 villagers have already made up their mind to strive to the end to protect their land.
Wu said, “The Jinfu City farmers’ actions involve the basic interests of 700 to 800 million farmers in the whole country. Land in China belongs to the country in name only, but in reality it belongs to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) bureaucracy. Various levels of bureaucrats seize the land and sell it at will. It is perfectly justified for them to take their land back.”
“I advocate farmers’ individual land ownership! If possible, all farmers in China should start to act. Farmers control of the land is equivalent to having control of their destiny.”
Be More Unified
The Epoch Times reporter has made many phone calls to the Fujin City government and Fujin City police to find out their next step, but got no reply.
Wu suggested the farmers should be more unified, “Farmers should protect each other, if the authority wants to arrest someone, mobilize more farmers to protect him. They should insist that everything should be done according to the law. Anyone making an arrest should have a court order. Whoever is illegally arrested must be rescued.”
Wu also suggested that Fujin farmers should establish the first farmer’s association in China. “Get united and form an independent farmers’ association. I suggest the elder in the village take the lead. Charge every household 5 to 10 yuan for funding, with the money, things can be accomplished. By pulling together to do a couple of things, people will establish confidence.”
Wu said, “I hope there will be no blood shed, no violence, nothing to give the government excuses to suppress the people. I suggest farmers take down the name plate of the communist authority and step on it, destroy the CCP’s prestige, because the CCP has only done bad things. Replace the name plate with the Independent Farmers’ Association nameplate. Avoid colluding with the police.”
Wu indicated at the end of the interview that he would like to hear farmer’s feedback. He hoped that the farmers could carry out the China Transitional Government’s suggestions and he is willing to further discuss this with the farmers, to bring up new workable solutions. Wu also revealed that the China Transitional Government is going to formally announce its establishment, and will assist them in overseas publicity and legal matters.
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