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Driving people mad

By Qiu Lin (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-10-30 07:55

There is also a belief that private cars are personal assets under the Property Law, in which case owners have rights pertaining to their ownership, use and disposal.

Beijing lawyer Li Dejia says the government's good intentions should not be at the expense of citizens giving up their rights to private property.

Related readings:  New traffic rules in Beijing  Beijing imposes car ban to ease traffic jams  Traffic eases on car ban's first day  Post-Olympic traffic faces challenges in Beijing

"But I can still understand that the government is trying to balance the long-term public interest and a short-term conflict," he says.

Prof Zhang Ming, of Renmin University, is less understanding and strongly opposes the ban on private cars. "Some small business people depend on their cars to make a living and a day without their car will cause a loss of income," he says.

Zhang suggests that more government-owned cars be banned. "The government has a lot to do to improve Beijing's air and traffic," he says, "but one thing it shouldn't do is ban private cars from the road."

He also fears the government might in future apply the same logic - personal sacrifice for the good of the majority - in other areas of life.

As for distressed mother Zhang Ximan, she says: "I don't know how long I can put up with all this inconvenience. Isn't there anything else the government can do to improve the air and traffic?"

She is now considering circumventing the ban by doing something available to very few Beijingers. Having made a fortune as a developer in the real estate industry during the boom, she is now thinking of ... buying a third car.

 

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