Analysis of crimes against national and state lands from the perspective of social constructionism theory: Rethinking the concept of ownership and state sovereignty

ربیع, مهدی; Sheikholeslami, Abbas; Fouladiyan, Majid

doi:10.22034/jml.2025.2043803.1398

Analysis of crimes against national and state lands from the perspective of social constructionism theory: Rethinking the concept of ownership and state sovereignty

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

مهدی ربیع ¹

abbas sheikholeslami ²

majid Fouladiyan ³

¹ Ph.D. researcher and academician of the Judiciary Lawyers Center

² Department of Law, Mashhad Branch, Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran

³ Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Literature and Social Sciences, Ferdowsi University, Mashhad, Iran

10.22034/jml.2025.2043803.1398

Abstract

This article examines the laws related to the acquisition of national and state lands in Iran and their social and legal consequences with the approach of social constructionism. First, the Nationalization Law of Forests and Ranges approved in 1341 and the Law of Protection and Exploitation of Natural Resources are analyzed and their role in the management of natural resources and their effects on private property rights are examined. Then, the land acquisition law for public projects and the challenges caused by the legal conflict between the government and private owners are discussed. Another part of the article examines crimes against national lands such as land grabbing and aggressive occupation, not only from a legal point of view, but also as a social phenomenon and provides examples of judicial cases.

In the following, the role of the government in changing the concept of ownership from private to national and the social consequences of these changes, especially in local communities, are discussed. The article deals with cultural and legal conflicts between land acquisition policies and local needs and analyzes the effect of these conflicts on the increase of crimes related to national and state lands. Finally, solutions to amend laws and reduce these crimes through the participation of local communities and public education are suggested.

Keywords

social constructionism

land acquisition

land nationalization laws

private property rights

national and state lands

legal conflicts

Subjects