bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

paywallTypes

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Xinlu Liang

After years of struggle for rural women in China to own land, a new law is set to help clear the path for equal rights in land ownership.
On paper, Chinese land ownership is already equal, but in practice, women still struggle against legal loopholes, weak legal enforcement and outdated traditions.
That is what the “Rural Collective Economic Organisations Law” is expected to help fix. Passed late last month, the law aims to give clearer details on membership rules for rural collectives, a crucial step towards more equitable land ownership for rural women.
It will take effect in May.
But while experts are pleased that the new law will help to clarify women’s rights as well as making it easier for them to access legal help, they have voiced concerns that it still contains some ambiguity that could lead to manipulation by rural authorities.
Rural land in China is collectively owned, but it is divided among families according to their size. The central government mandates that land use rights are leased to households for 15 years, with reallocations every 30 years.
Under the 1984 household responsibility system, land is registered in the name of the household head, usually a man, excluding women from owning or inheriting land.
When a woman “marries out” to another village, she takes her hukou – her household registration – with her, losing her portion of the land registered to her family, while also being excluded from future allocations in her home village. But, having missed the land allocation at her husband’s village, she risks not being recognised as a new member of the collective.
Despite the existing law explicitly stating that women’s rights to land are equal to those of men and cannot be infringed upon by marriage or divorce, male-dominated village assemblies, often run along traditional lines and operated as autonomous entities in China’s political system, frequently exclude “married-out”, divorced or remarried women and their children from the collective.
It is hoped the new law will plug the legal loophole, with multiple provisions aimed at protecting the rights of women in rural collectives, according to experts.
In particular, Article 12 of the new law removes a slew of conditions that previously had to be met when evaluating membership. These included considerations such as historical context, practical realities, procedural fairness and public recognition.

“The original standards are unclear and unfair to women, with too many conditions,” said Lin Lixia from Qianqian Law Firm in Beijing, which specialises in advocacy for women’s rights.
“For example, ‘respecting history’ means it’s unnecessary to solve the issue as it has always been done this way. ‘Gaining public recognition’ requires majority agreement, which is difficult to achieve. How can it be possible when there’s a conflict between the interests of the minority [‘married-out’ women and their children] and the majority [male members]?” Lin said.
Article 12 also specifies the circumstances under which newly married individuals and newborns should obtain membership in a rural collective economic organisation, ensuring that women who move to their husband’s hometown after marriage can obtain legal membership, and also providing legal protection for children. Previously, babies born to “married-out” women were often excluded from collectives.
“This is indeed a significant step forward,” said Lin, who has been tracking the issue of “married-out” women losing their land rights since 2004. A large number of affected rural children in provinces like Guangxi, Shandong and Zhejiang have lost their rights to land.
And without these rights, women and their children cannot build houses in their own names. Or if their family’s land is taken for development projects, they often do not get their fair share of the compensation, according to Lin.
In over 20 years, Lin’s law firm has handled more than 3,000 cases involving women fighting for their land rights. But chances of success have been slim, with 90 per cent of those cases either unsuccessful or dismissed.
To give better protection, the new law has also introduced procedural safeguards, according to Peter Chan, an associate law professor at Hong Kong’s City University.
“Residents who disagree with the membership confirmation decision may resort to mediation, arbitration or litigation to enforce their rights,” he said. “It also authorises the procuratorate [prosecutor’s office] to issue procuratorial recommendations or bring public interest litigation against the collective economic organisation.”
It is this ability for prosecutors’ offices to file public interest lawsuits to protect women’s rights that will make it easier for women to access the legal system without having to take individual legal action. Previously, women had to launch litigation, arbitration or seek administrative mediation on their own.
Despite such breakthroughs, there were still loopholes in the law that needed to be addressed, experts noted.
Some articles remain unclear and open to interpretation, which require further clarification through judicial interpretations, according to Huina Xiao, an assistant professor from the department of law and business at Hong Kong Shue Yan University.
“As the new law still leaves the decision-making power in the hands of the collective economic organisation, the risk of manipulation of the confirmation process by the CEO remains,” she said.
We have seen many cases where villagers … prefer to prioritise collective interests over individual rights. Even when the court makes a decision [favouring women], it is often not enforced
Lin Lixia, lawyer and women’s rights advocate
Lin agreed, arguing that the present system where village assemblies were the main authority for determining membership was flawed.
“We have seen many cases where villagers are not familiar with the law and prefer to prioritise collective interests over individual rights,” she said. “Even when the court makes a decision [favouring women], it is often not enforced, as some local judges also prioritise social stability over the rule of law.”
She said the Supreme People’s Court should issue judicial interpretations on the definition of membership, and called upon local governments and courts to strictly enforce the new law.
Zhang Yongchao, a lecturer from Nanjing Agricultural University who researches rural land rights, also noted that the law did not specify the details of land distribution, including how assets would be divided among members in the event of a male member’s death, leaving only the new wife with the right to inherit and enjoy the collective benefits.
It also did not define the specific proportion of shares or the amount of money each member would receive, he said, leaving the question to village assemblies – which varied wildly across regions.
“Some village heads maintain an authoritarian image, infringing on the villagers’ land rights and lacking [legal] awareness,” he said.
“The law can only provide a framework for stating how rights will be protected and maintained, but concrete measures require practical organisational forms to be developed. This is part of the institutional reform process.”


French court sentences man to life for burning wife alive, case draws criticism of police

Kirsty Coventry must rise to Olympic challenge after stunning win

Why women-only ‘Mum’s club’ parties are taking off at nightclubs in France and beyond

South Korean mayor sparks outrage by blaming female employees for wildfire woes

Women and gender

Can a new Chinese law on rural rights finally give women their promised land?

Experts say new law taking effect in May 2025 still contains some ambiguity that could lead to manipulation by rural authorities. Photo: AFP

In China, if a woman marries someone from another village, she can lose many land ownership rights as she moves to a new rural collective. Photo: AFP

Lie of the land: China’s rural women struggle for land rights in the courts, despite legal protections

In cases of land compensation for “married-out women”, village assemblies often ignore rights guaranteed to them under Chinese law. Photo: Shutterstock Images

As calls for Chinese rural land reform get louder, will Beijing take a soft approach?

Illustration: Davies Christian Surya

Reform of farmland led the economic rise of China in 1978. But as other market reforms have bypassed it, land reform has remained on the back burner for more than 40 years. Photo: Xinhua

How reforming rural land rights can aid China’s common prosperity push

Illustration: Craig Stephens

How famous Chinese folktale ‘Legend of the White Snake’ portrayed women negatively for centuries  in China

The timeless saga of “The Legend of the White Snake” weaves a mesmerising tale of forbidden love between a mortal man and an enchanting female snake spirit. Photo: SCMP composite/Wikipedia

A painting from the Summer Palace in Beijing depicts “The Legend of the White Snake” which showcases a serene and mystical scene. Photo: Wikipedia/Shizhao

“The Legend of the White Snake” is a popular Chinese folktale that has been adapted into various forms of literature, including books, plays, and poems.

Numerous films have depicted “The Legend of the White Snake” like the one above in 2019. Photo: iQiyi

Why search for love in the ‘iron rice bowl’ may be killing growth in northern China

It is an unwritten social norm in China’s northeast for young people with government jobs to only marry each other, researcher says, flagging talent flight, joblessness, and declining birth rate. Photo:  Xinhua

News

China

Politics

The Rural Collective Economic Organisations Law aims to help Chinese women assert their land rights, but experts say more clarification may be needed


A new law aimed at clarifying membership rules for rural collectives promises to help Chinese women assert land rights.


Human rights in China

China property