Rural Hong Kong leaders threaten mass protest against what they see as unreasonable restrictions on land rights
Heung Yee Kuk expresses dissatisfaction about government policy, blaming government complacency after gaining support from DAB
Rural leaders have threatened a mass march in protest against government land policies in the New Territories that they say pose unreasonable restrictions on their land rights.
At a Heung Yee Kuk meeting on Tuesday, the rural leaders also blamed the government for the strained relations with the kuk in recent years, claiming they were forced to form a political party of their own to make their voices heard.
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Yuen Long rural patriarch Leung Fuk-yuen said: “We have been keen supporters of the government. But what has the government done for us?
“There are town planning rules to restrict us from developing our own land. And even if we build houses on our land, we risk being locked up.”
Leung was referring to a court ruling last December in which 11 villagers were found guilty of illegally selling their rights to build small houses to a developer. The kuk has argued it was a common practice for villagers to trade their rights and this should be protected by the Basic Law.
Leung added: “The government thought it would be fine after it got support from the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong and ignored our views.