The Toughest Tartar

1. The Toughest Tartar Constitutional Rights

2. The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frail — its roof may shake — the wind may blow through it — the storm may enter — the rain may enter — but the King of England cannot enter — all his force dares not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement! by William Pitt Speech on the Excise Bill

3. The story of the toughest tartar William the Conqueror wanted to build a royal pavilion in Potsdam.When the palace was constructed,he found that there was a mill in front of the palace.He took it as an annoyance and asked his Home Secretary to handle it.The secretary offered a very high price to buy the mill but was refused.William raised the price but the owner of the mill refused again.The emperor was very angry and demolished the mill. The miller took it easy when the mill was broke down:you may have super power but I believe that the law is superior to you! The next day,the millowner hired a lawyer and sued the Emperor,and surprisedly,the court accepted the case.

4. How could the judge be impartial when one of the parties is the Emperor!Well,the greatest thing happened--the judge decided that it was the miller who win the case.Why?It’s only because private property is clearly sacred and inviolable and no one can tore the mill down without legitimate reasons. The judgement was that the Emperor should rehabilitate the mill and compensate for the losses.When the Emperor got the decision he broke into laughters:too much power may blind anyone even an Emperor. Thanks to the good judges and lawyers in Germany so the case was judged in the right way.The Emperor then asked people to rebuild the mill and paid for the damage. …End of the story? Not the end!

5. Some years later,William the conqueror died and his son became the Emperor.The old miller died also and the little miller run the mill.The new miller decided to move to the city and because of poor management,the mill was on the verge of bankruptcy.He remembered the case between his father and the old Emperor and wondered if the new Emperor would like to buy the mill,so he wrote a letter to William Ⅱ,described the situation and requested the purchase.

6. The new emperor replied like this:”My dear neighbour,I’m sorry to hear that you have to sell the mill for living.Please allow me to show my sympathy.But the mill itself is much more than just a mill,it is the milestone of the judicial independence in our country.So I think it should be kept as your mill always.Regarding to your misery these days,I’d like to give you three thousand marks to overcome the difficulty.It’s just a token of my regard.If you feel uncomfortable with it you can give it back to me when you got money.Your neighbour William Ⅱ.

10. Mrs Wu used to work in a department store and married a guy called Yang Wu,who was a good boxer.Mrs Wu quit the job after getting married and run a restruant with her husband and the business was very prosperous. • In 2004,two Real Estate Development Co.,Ltd in Chongqing planned to remould Hexing Street,where the Wu Ping’house was located. • Wu Ping got to know that she had two liscences on the house—the Real Estate Title Certificate and the land property certificate（产权证和国土证）which means she could choose to get money or get a new house from the property developpers.

11. She wanted a house but the developpers would like to give money fro compensation as we all know the housing price went higher and higher in those years. • The negotiation between Wu Ping and the developpers became a deadlock.Wu’s house was the only one which was still standing in that area in May,2006.No water and electrcity supply.Her husband still lived in the house with a gas tank,ready to protect their house at the cost of life. • In 2007,the court in the district issued Forced Demolition Order(强拆令)for three times in one day.

12. Discussion • Why did Wu Ping hold the Constitution in the picture? • Find provision in Constitution and Property Law which could be applied in Wu Ping’s case. Debate • Should we protect our property at the cost of our lives? • Pros vs Cons

13. Assignment Read the provided material and write an essay on Urbanization in China.Try your best to analyze the issue from a legal perspective. Qs for your reference: • How to compound the mess between public interest and private interest? • Why did the public hold different ideas with some famous jurists? • What is Populism?(民粹主义)How to avoid the abuse of Populism?

14. Assignment Read the provided material and write an essay on Urbanization in China.Try your best to analyze the issue from a legal perspective. Qs for your reference: How to compound the mess between public interest and private interest? Why did the public hold different ideas with some famous jurists? What is Populism?(民粹主义)How to avoid the abuse of Populism?