Chinese govt fined USD 13,000 for destroying family tombs

A local government in northeast China has been ordered to pay USD 13,000 compensation to a resident for removing the burial "tombs" erected in honour of their ancestors, after it lost a lawsuit defending the removal.
The Shenyang Intermediate People's Court ordered the government of Hunnan District to pay 81,600 yuan (USD 13,000) as compensation to 73-year-old Zhang Heyuan.
The order came as China observed the "Tomb Sweeping Festival" when millions burn paper offerings to their dead relatives in a tradition dating back thousands of years.
Offerings to the dead have been found at some of China's oldest grave sites. The festival was declared a national holiday in 2007.

Zhang sued the district government for destroying 28 tombs belonging to his ancestors, relatives and friends on a mountain marked as a tourist spot in 2007.
The government claimed the burials were "unauthorised" and removed the tombs after issuing an ultimatum.

The verdict recognised the tombs as historical legacies and Zhang's property.
The government was ordered to pay compensation for 17 of the destroyed tombs that belonged to Zhang's family, state-run Xinhua news agency.
Shrinking land resources have prompted local Chinese governments to launch campaigns to clear burial mounds in the countryside and transfer the remains to public cemeteries, often triggering controversy.

In 2012, a voluntary tomb-clearing campaign that saw 2 million burial mounds removed in Zhoukou City, Henan Province drew criticism after some officials reportedly forced the removal of grave.