ABSTRACT
Human poverty can be attributed to four primary factors: the scarcity of materials, the deficiency of capability, the deprivation of rights, and the lack of motivation. The poverty of farmers’ rights is evidenced in the following several areas: their lack of basic civil rights, equal political representation and participation, freedom of movement, social security, equal education opportunities, and medical insurance. Since 1949, Chinese farmers have experienced dramatic changes in dealing with their land property. Farmers’ rights to land tenure form the core foundation of their overall rights to land property, without which their other rights, such as those to land disposal and profit, are meaningless. The ability of farmers to decide on their land disposal is a significant indicator of their overall land property rights. The right of farmers to their land profit is another core component of their general land property rights, for land is worthless without cultivators being able to derive income from it.
