Community Justice and the Appeal to Ancestral Property Rights: An Analysis of Disputes over Development Plans in Xiatang Village of Central Jiangxi

Abstract

Past studies have well documented the atrophy of lineage organizations and functions in rural China after 1949 as well as their resurgence in the post-Mao era. To further the research on lineage organizations and changes in their functions, this article reexamines the role of lineage organizations in the resistance against graveyard removal in Xiatang village of central Jiangxi province. Xiatang villagers attempted to revive traditional clan culture by rebuilding ancestral halls and updating clan genealogies; they also succeeded in defending their nominal ownership of Mt. Qingling by appealing to their ancestral property rights in the struggle against graveyard removal. The recent improvements in villagers’ living conditions, changes in the mode of production in agriculture, and the expansion of market forces have all led to changes in power relations in Xiatang village, in which the revived lineage organizations played a role that is both symbolic and instrumental. Yet, the control of community resources by the administrative and business elites, together with the penetration of state power into rural society through various channels, also effectively eroded lineage influences.