‘Nice apartments, no jobs’: How former villagers experienced displacement and resettlement in the western suburbs of Shanghai

Abstract

In this paper, we document the displacement and resettlement of over 11,000 villagers who were removed from their homes and relocated in modern apartment blocks to make way for the construction of a new business district in the western suburbs of Shanghai. We examine the expectations and concerns of displaced residents before and after their relocation. Our findings showed that while the former villagers recognized the improvement in their physical surroundings, they were deeply concerned about their loss of rental income resulting from the demolition of their former homes, in which they housed unregistered migrants. They felt unfairly treated by government throughout the relocation process and saw themselves as being decanted into a new village-in-the-city. These results paint a much more unequivocal picture of resident dissatisfaction than is found in some other recent research.

In‐Situ Marginalisation: Social Impact of Chinese Mega‐Projects

“…The relocation of millions of residents and forced evictions have been highlighted by many studies as major social problems of China’s mega developments (Hsing ; Jiang et al ; Shin ; Zhang , ). However, through the case of Neighbourhood No.57, we find that the biggest social problem in Lingang is in‐situ marginalisation whereby residents, who have not been relocated, suffer from declining public services and environmental quality due to nearby industrial activities.…”

“…However, the experience of relocation in peri‐urban areas has been more mixed. Studies found both negative experiences of displacement and residents complaining about the lack of employment (Jiang et al ) and more positive responses about improved living standards (Li and Song ). Hsing’s () research in rural Beijing revealed that the government is much keener to develop in the rural areas of cities.…”

“…Often the resistance of villagers is considerably weaker as their demand for compensation is lower and therefore easier to satisfy (Hsing ; Shih ). Furthermore, the conversion of farmland to urban land has also taken away the source of living for landless farmers who instead have to rely on renting out properties to migrants and take on other jobs in cases where the rental income is not sufficient (He et al ; Jiang et al ).…”

“…The increasingly more generous compensation towards residents (Shih ) is therefore selective and more an attempt to foreground resistance instead of pure benevolence of the state (Kan ). However, once the “obstacle” of residents has been relocated from the site, the state also halts its care for the relocated residents as can be seen from the lack of employment and community facilities for relocated residents (Jiang et al ; Zhang et al ). Another resident group that is of great relevance to the strategic objectives of the state are prospective new residents with high levels of education and technical skills.…”

“…Many studies have associated the project‐led approach of mega urban development with the displacement of marginalised residents, the gradual gentrification of localities and the emergence of a post‐political society (Attuyer ; Lehrer and Laidley ; Olds ; Swyngedouw ; Swyngedouw et al ; Tarazona Vento ; Watt ). Large‐scale developments have also become a salient feature of Chinese urbanisation and many studies have highlighted the social problems such projects create (Jiang et al ; Shin ; Wu et al ; Zhang ). Most of the critique so far has been directed towards the process of mass relocating residents and its ensuing problems of forced displacements and conflicts over poor compensation (Hsing ; Shih ; Shin ; Zhang ).…”