Villagers confront China authorities over protests

VILLAGERS IN southern China protesting against what they see as heavy-handed Communist Party rule have threatened further action unless the body of their representative is handed over to them and their colleagues are freed from custody.

The death in custody of Xue Jinbo (42) last week prompted a police blockade of the fishing village of Wukan in Guangdong province, which for months has been the scene of occasionally violent protests by villagers over land grabs.

In the past few weeks the residents have driven officials out of Wukan and they now control the village. Residents say they will march on government offices this week unless Mr Xue’s body is released. The police say he died of an unspecified illness while in custody, while villagers believe his body was covered in bruises.

On Saturday, the villagers gathered again in a central square to shout anti-government slogans and to call for the return of land they say was stolen to make way for government-sponsored, lucrative developments. The authorities have vowed to come down hard on the ringleaders of the latest bout of unrest, which was triggered by the arrest nine days ago of five villagers, including Mr Xue.

Last year there were 280,000 so-called “mass incidents”, including petitions, demonstrations and strikes, both peaceful and violent in China. The Wukan riots are part of a pattern of protest that has existed in China for many years.

The reaction across the country, largely evident through microblogs such as Sina Weibo, has been broadly supportive. There was a small demonstration in support of the Wukan villagers in Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong, yesterday.