Abstract

The imbalance of power inherent in China’s land management model has been the root cause of land disputes in rural and suburban areas. These land issues increasingly threaten social stability, which in turn could have an impact on economic development and human security. The country’s land management problems are exacerbated by governance weaknesses such as policy implementation difficulties and corruption. Given that land reform in China will continue to be difficult to achieve, at least in the short term, improvements to land governance should be prioritised, as better governance could ease the rising tensions that stem from inequities related to land rights.