Party chiefs vow to target illegal villas

The Party chiefs of Xi'an and Shaanxi province vowed action over the weekend to tackle the problem of illegal construction in the ecologically sensitive Qinling Mountains, after a number of high-ranking officials were probed or punished over corruption.

An investigation in the summer found that many villas had been built without permission in the city's green areas since a campaign targeted them in 2014.

As a result, hundreds of the homes were demolished in recent weeks and landscape restoration work is ongoing, according to the city government.

Wang Yongkang, Party secretary of Xi'an, hosted a group study session on Saturday with members of the city committee of the Communist Party of China. Afterward, he vowed in a statement to steer Xi'an on an ecological, green and sustainable development path.

Hu Heping, the provincial Party secretary, also promised a thorough investigation into the illegal construction problem, and said those found violating laws or Party discipline will be severely punished.

"We should learn the lessons from the fight against corrupt officials, realize the ideological root of the problem and put forward corrective measures," Xu Lingyi, deputy head of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the top anti-corruption watchdog, said in a meeting with Shaanxi officials in Xi'an on Friday.

The Qinling Mountains, an important east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi, supports a large variety of plants and wildlife. However, since 1997 many unapproved villas have been built on its northern side, occupying farms and forests and creating pollution.

To protect the environment, the province issued a notice in early 2003 prohibiting any construction in the Qinling Natural Reserve.

President Xi Jinping has given instructions about stopping illegal construction of villas and environmental destruction in the area on six occasions.

A campaign to tackle the problem was launched in 2014, with 202 unapproved structures demolished or seized by authorities, and 110 people handed disciplinary or administrative penalties.

However, a probe led by Xu at the end of July found that the problem continues, and that some of the real estate projects had been started in the past three to four years.

As of Oct 9, government work crews had knocked down about 600 illegally built villas, covering a total of more than 300,000 square meters, the city government said.

The largest project covered about 9,400 sq m and included several buildings, two fishing ponds, gardens and a kennel of 78 sq m, Shaanxi Daily reported.

Xu said some local officials knew about the illegal projects but failed to investigate or report them in a timely manner to higher authorities, while others took bribes to help companies or individuals obtain the land.

The CCDI announced on Nov 1 that Qian Yin'an, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Shaanxi Committee, had been placed under investigation for serious violations of Party discipline and law. The authority's statement did not mention the villas.

The standing committee of the Xi'an people's congress, the city's legislature, accepted the resignation of Mayor Shangguan Jiqing on Nov 5.