Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Strategies & Market Trends : China Warehouse- More Than Crockery -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: RealMuLan who wrote (458)	8/21/2003 11:42:09 AM
From: RealMuLan	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 6370

Blow to Shanghai property probe By Richard McGregor in Beijing Published: August 21 2003 5:00 \| Last Updated: August 21 2003 5:00 The failure of a court case against a leading Shanghai developer has been taken as a signal that the authorities will not pursue a full-blooded probe into corruption in the local property market. A district court in central Shanghai ruled that Zhou Zhengyi, a wealthy tycoon under investigation for financial irregularities, was acting legally when he acquired land in the Jingan area of the city and evicted its residents so that he could redevelop it. The residents claimed Mr Zhou had obtained part of the land for free, and was therefore liable to rehouse them in the new complex he intended to build. They were told they could now attempt to negotiate with the authorities for greater compensation. The legal action is one of a number mounted by aggrieved residents of Jingan, an area that has been at the heart of some of the largest redevelopments in a city that has been all but rebuilt in recent years. The scandal surrounding Mr Zhou had the potential to become a national issue because of the developer's close ties to officials in the so-called "Shanghai gang", the power base of Jiang Zemin, the former president. However, the investigation so far appears to have been purposely limited to Mr Zhou, several other developers and top executives at the Bank of China in both Hong Kong and Shanghai. In spite of the government's intimate role in the property sector, so far no senior officials have been publicly implicated in the scandal. Residents said yesterday they had been prevented from entering the court on Tuesday to hear the decision. "This shows that the courts in Shanghai are not unbiased," said one resident. Another resident, who also asked not to be named, said his group intended to appeal within the next two weeks. A lawyer who advised the residents, Zheng Enchong, remains in detention. news.ft.com