Peasants’ land rights and the hollowing out of communal property management in rural China

Abstract

In recent years, China has strengthened the land rights of peasants while weakening the system of communal ownership of rural land. This study explores the rationale of land ownership policies enacted in China since 1978 to understand the trend toward privatization. Commonly, support for land ownership privatization has rested on two main assumptions. First, it is seen as a means to protect peasants’ interests and stimulate investment in agricultural production. Second, well-defined property rights may facilitate the transfer of land, thereby reducing transaction costs, and promoting the efficient utilization of land resources. However, this study finds that these assumptions in favor of strengthening peasants’ individual land rights are not borne out in the strategic behavior of land-rights holders. The ambiguity in how the Chinese household registration system qualifies who is a peasant, and thereby endowed with rights, has effectively allowed urban migrants to retain signifi­cant control over the majority of rural land while showing little interest in local village affairs. Quali­tative research conducted in Anhui province reveals that instead of privatization promoting effi­cient land utilization, it creates a divide between land managed by local peasants who have remained committed to continuous cultivation and supplying fresh food, and land managed by absentees, which is often left idle for years or underutilized. This study contends that many elements of the increas­ingly marginalized communal land system are con­ducive to ensuring local food security, maintaining active rural governance, and preserving the social cohesion of rural communities.