standing ground in China
I know this isn't my story... but a funny story nonetheless...
A CHINESE man has gone to extremes to prove that his home in his castle.
In defiance of controversial new property laws in China, Yang Wu has refused to leave his house which now stands on a pillar of rock in the middle of a huge development site in the fastest growing city on earth.
Hundreds of sightseers visit the house daily and supporters have been supplying Mr Yang with food which he pulls up by a rope.
The house, scheduled for demolition in 2004 now stands alone, suspended high in the air in the centre of a large pit in the city of Chongqing in southwestern China.
The other 280 families in the area left their homes which were all demolished.
Despite court orders and offers of compensation, Mr Wu, a restaurant owner, has refused to budge.
His wife Ping Wu stands guard outside the barricade the developers have built around the house.
The couple stood defiant yesterday, the day scheduled by court order for their house's demolition, and said they are staying put.
"The house is still there," Mrs Wu said.
"My husband is inside, and will be there as long as it is."
Chongqing sits on a fork in the Yangtse river. Its population is growing by 500,000 a year -- possibly the fastest sustained expansion of any city in history.
