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| Chinese fury as ID fraud becomes recurring motif in property scandals | Chinese fury as ID fraud becomes recurring motif in property scandals |
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| A public security official in southern China purchased 192 properties with the help of a fake identification card, state media has reported. | A public security official in southern China purchased 192 properties with the help of a fake identification card, state media has reported. |
| Zhao Haibin, a high-level Communist party official in Lufeng city's public security bureau, was exposed online for alleged excessive property buying by a local multimillionaire amid a business dispute. According to the Guangzhou Daily newspaper, Zhao claimed the properties belonged to his brother, but admitted to forging an identification card. | Zhao Haibin, a high-level Communist party official in Lufeng city's public security bureau, was exposed online for alleged excessive property buying by a local multimillionaire amid a business dispute. According to the Guangzhou Daily newspaper, Zhao claimed the properties belonged to his brother, but admitted to forging an identification card. |
| Identity fraud has become a recurring motif in property scandals after a senior executive at a bank in Shaanxi province was outed last month for purchasing 41 properties with fake residence registration permits, called hukou in Mandarin. | Identity fraud has become a recurring motif in property scandals after a senior executive at a bank in Shaanxi province was outed last month for purchasing 41 properties with fake residence registration permits, called hukou in Mandarin. |
| China's new leader Xi Jinping has embarked on a high-profile anti-corruption crackdown since he took the reins of the Communist party in the autumn. Yet experts say these cases highlight a labyrinthine dimension to the problem which could make it enormously difficult to root out. | China's new leader Xi Jinping has embarked on a high-profile anti-corruption crackdown since he took the reins of the Communist party in the autumn. Yet experts say these cases highlight a labyrinthine dimension to the problem which could make it enormously difficult to root out. |
| "This kind of story, it underscores the fact that it's very hard to know how much property people have," said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a Chinese politics expert at Hong Kong Baptist University. "Because usually what they've done is to register the properties under relatives' names, friends' names and companies' names, so it's a real maze, and it's hard for the authorities to really pare down this kind of practice." | "This kind of story, it underscores the fact that it's very hard to know how much property people have," said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a Chinese politics expert at Hong Kong Baptist University. "Because usually what they've done is to register the properties under relatives' names, friends' names and companies' names, so it's a real maze, and it's hard for the authorities to really pare down this kind of practice." |
| The Shaanxi bank executive, a 49-year-old woman named Gong Aiai, forged four hukou between 2004 and 2008, allowing her to purchase £101m worth of property without sounding alarm bells. According to the state news agency Xinhua, police detained Gong on Monday for falsifying official documents. They have seized 10 of her apartments and her Audi car. | The Shaanxi bank executive, a 49-year-old woman named Gong Aiai, forged four hukou between 2004 and 2008, allowing her to purchase £101m worth of property without sounding alarm bells. According to the state news agency Xinhua, police detained Gong on Monday for falsifying official documents. They have seized 10 of her apartments and her Audi car. |
| Xinhua reported on Tuesday that police have detained seven people associated with Gong's case, including four police officers and a former colleague at Shenmu County Rural Commercial Bank who purchased 12 apartments under three different identities. | Xinhua reported on Tuesday that police have detained seven people associated with Gong's case, including four police officers and a former colleague at Shenmu County Rural Commercial Bank who purchased 12 apartments under three different identities. |
| In an unrelated case, Chinese media reported that an anti-corruption official in north-eastern Heilongjiang province bought 14 houses under his wife's name and then divorced her to hide his paper trail. | In an unrelated case, Chinese media reported that an anti-corruption official in north-eastern Heilongjiang province bought 14 houses under his wife's name and then divorced her to hide his paper trail. |
| Internet users nicknamed Gong "House Elder Sister" and Zhao "House Grandpa", a play on the netizen-dubbed "Uncle House" – a 59-year-old Guangdong official who made headlines last autumn for owning 22 properties despite his meagre government salary. Many were particularly furious about the hukou fraud given the notorious severity of the country's residence registration system, which forces countless rural migrants into low-paying urban jobs with limited future prospects. | Internet users nicknamed Gong "House Elder Sister" and Zhao "House Grandpa", a play on the netizen-dubbed "Uncle House" – a 59-year-old Guangdong official who made headlines last autumn for owning 22 properties despite his meagre government salary. Many were particularly furious about the hukou fraud given the notorious severity of the country's residence registration system, which forces countless rural migrants into low-paying urban jobs with limited future prospects. |
| "There are practical, logical and symbolic reasons" for the major public backlash against these cases, said Cabestan. "For a long time Chinese people didn't have access to property, it was a dream." | "There are practical, logical and symbolic reasons" for the major public backlash against these cases, said Cabestan. "For a long time Chinese people didn't have access to property, it was a dream." |
| Furthermore, massive property investments by corrupt officials has contributed to a spike in housing prices, making even modest apartments unaffordable for ordinary people. "For young couples, it's getting very hard – it's impossible without their parents' help to buy property," he said. "This is contributing to widening [China's] social gap." | Furthermore, massive property investments by corrupt officials has contributed to a spike in housing prices, making even modest apartments unaffordable for ordinary people. "For young couples, it's getting very hard – it's impossible without their parents' help to buy property," he said. "This is contributing to widening [China's] social gap." |
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