Dongzhou protests
Encyclopedia
A series of protests took place for seven months up to December 2005 in Dongzhou
(东洲), a village in Shanwei
prefecture-level city
, Guangdong Province
, China, organized in opposition to government plans to partially infill
the bay and build a new power plant. It resulted in the shooting deaths of several villagers in the night of 6 December 2005 by People's Armed Police
. The death toll is unknown, with different sources mentioning anywhere from three to several dozen deaths. The protests resumed in November 2006.
According to Xinhua, the Information Office of the government of Shanwei described the incident as "serious violation of law", in which Huang Xijun, Lin Hanru and Huang Xirang led protesters in attacking police with knives, petrol bombs, and other explosive devices. Xinhua reported that the police fired warning shots but, in the confusion after nightfall, people were hit by mistake http://gd.xinhuanet.com/gdnews/2005-12/11/content_5789418.htm.
NPR also reported armed police responding to mob after unarmed police were attacked with molotov cocktail.
The incident is the first known deadly use of firearms by security forces against civilians in the PRC since the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
. The village is still sealed off by government forces who are searching for suspects involved in the violence and preventing people from leaving the village.
There are reports that local authorities are refusing to return bodies to families, in some cases offering money to villagers instead so that they would stop asking for the bodies. It is also reported that on 9 December, many villagers held incense sticks and knelt in front of police barricades in the village, asking for the bodies of their loved ones for proper burial. They have so far been refused. The South China Morning Post
quoted some residents who said that the officials were attempting to hide the death toll.
reported on 13 December that, according to the Shanwei TV Station via Agence France Presse, Wu Sheng, the vice director of the Shanwei Police Department, was placed in criminal detention by procurator bureau for mishandling the event http://www.takungpao.com/news/05/12/13/ZM-496758.htm. According to local television via the Washington Post, nine residents were also arrested http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/13/AR2005121302007.html.
So far, the news has been followed closely by Hong Kong, Taiwan, dissident Chinese, and overseas media, but has received lesser coverage in mainland China
media.
In June 2006, the New York Times reported that 19 villagers had been prosecuted for the unrest, 7 being given long sentences for disturbing public order and using explosives against the Police. This was taken to be evidence of the Chinese government covering up the true nature of the shootings. The trial was not widely reported on and locals said that they were constantly being pressured not to talk about what happened in 2005. Construction work resumed on the plant after the protests ended, with no compensation being handed out. No public investigation of the shootings has been carried out either.
In November 2006, the BBC
reported that tension was again mounting in Dongzhou. The report stated that residents had taken eight local officials hostage after a villager was detained. Two days later, Radio Free Asia
reported that the officials had been released following a dawn raid by police, but more villagers had been detained. Shortly after, a similar event took place at another village in Guangdong, where villagers attempted to detain officials in a dispute over compensation for loss of farm land. Clearly the events in Dongzhou are not an isolated case but part of an ongoing wave of protests against land grabs in China, which Prime Minister Wen Jiabao
has acknowledged is an "historic error".
Dongzhou, Guangdong
Dongzhou is a coastal village in southern Guangdong province, China, under the jurisdiction of the prefecture-level city of Shanwei. It is inhabited largely by farmers and fishermen.- 2005 Protests :...
(东洲), a village in Shanwei
Shanwei
Shanwei is a prefecture-level city in Guangdong province of Southern China, People's Republic of China. It borders Jieyang to the east, Meizhou and Heyuan to the north, Huizhou to the west, and looks out to the South China Sea to the south...
prefecture-level city
Prefecture-level city
A prefectural level city , prefectural city or prefectural level municipality is an administrative division of the People's Republic of China, ranking below a province and above a county in China's administrative structure. Prefectural level cities form the second level of the administrative...
, Guangdong Province
Guangdong
Guangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
, China, organized in opposition to government plans to partially infill
Infill
Infill in its broadest meaning is material that fills in an otherwise unoccupied space. The term is commonly used in association with construction techniques such as wattle and daub, and civil engineering activities such as land reclamation.-Construction:...
the bay and build a new power plant. It resulted in the shooting deaths of several villagers in the night of 6 December 2005 by People's Armed Police
People's Armed Police
The People's Armed Police , officially Chinese People's Armed Police Force is a paramilitary or gendarmerie force primarily responsible for civilian policing and fire rescue duties in the People's Republic of China, as well as provide support to PLA during wartime.In contrast to public security...
. The death toll is unknown, with different sources mentioning anywhere from three to several dozen deaths. The protests resumed in November 2006.
Incident
The protests were held because local farmers were dissatisfied with the lack of compensation for land expropriated for the construction of the plant. They are also reportedly concerned with the potential for harmful pollution affecting their crops, while fishermen felt their livelihood would be adversely affected by the modifications to the bay.According to Xinhua, the Information Office of the government of Shanwei described the incident as "serious violation of law", in which Huang Xijun, Lin Hanru and Huang Xirang led protesters in attacking police with knives, petrol bombs, and other explosive devices. Xinhua reported that the police fired warning shots but, in the confusion after nightfall, people were hit by mistake http://gd.xinhuanet.com/gdnews/2005-12/11/content_5789418.htm.
NPR also reported armed police responding to mob after unarmed police were attacked with molotov cocktail.
The incident is the first known deadly use of firearms by security forces against civilians in the PRC since the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
Tiananmen Square protests of 1989
The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, also known as the June Fourth Incident in Chinese , were a series of demonstrations in and near Tiananmen Square in Beijing in the People's Republic of China beginning on 15 April 1989...
. The village is still sealed off by government forces who are searching for suspects involved in the violence and preventing people from leaving the village.
Casualties
The official New China News Agency stated that three people had been killed and eight others injured, but there are other reports that quoted villagers saying as many as 20 people had been killed.There are reports that local authorities are refusing to return bodies to families, in some cases offering money to villagers instead so that they would stop asking for the bodies. It is also reported that on 9 December, many villagers held incense sticks and knelt in front of police barricades in the village, asking for the bodies of their loved ones for proper burial. They have so far been refused. The South China Morning Post
South China Morning Post
The South China Morning Post , together with its Sunday edition, the Sunday Morning Post, is an English-language Hong Kong newspaper, published by the SCMP Group with a circulation of 104,000....
quoted some residents who said that the officials were attempting to hide the death toll.
Aftermath
On 11 December 2005 the Chinese government announced that a police commander was detained for mishandling the protest and causing deaths and injuries. Ta Kung PaoTa Kung Pao
Ta Kung Pao is the oldest active Chinese language newspaper in China. It is based in Hong Kong and has been funded by the government of the People's Republic of China since 1949...
reported on 13 December that, according to the Shanwei TV Station via Agence France Presse, Wu Sheng, the vice director of the Shanwei Police Department, was placed in criminal detention by procurator bureau for mishandling the event http://www.takungpao.com/news/05/12/13/ZM-496758.htm. According to local television via the Washington Post, nine residents were also arrested http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/13/AR2005121302007.html.
So far, the news has been followed closely by Hong Kong, Taiwan, dissident Chinese, and overseas media, but has received lesser coverage in mainland China
Mainland China
Mainland China, the Chinese mainland or simply the mainland, is a geopolitical term that refers to the area under the jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China . According to the Taipei-based Mainland Affairs Council, the term excludes the PRC Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and...
media.
In June 2006, the New York Times reported that 19 villagers had been prosecuted for the unrest, 7 being given long sentences for disturbing public order and using explosives against the Police. This was taken to be evidence of the Chinese government covering up the true nature of the shootings. The trial was not widely reported on and locals said that they were constantly being pressured not to talk about what happened in 2005. Construction work resumed on the plant after the protests ended, with no compensation being handed out. No public investigation of the shootings has been carried out either.
In November 2006, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
reported that tension was again mounting in Dongzhou. The report stated that residents had taken eight local officials hostage after a villager was detained. Two days later, Radio Free Asia
Radio Free Asia
Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation that operates a radio station and Internet news service. RFA was founded by an act of the US Congress and is operated by the Broadcasting Board of Governors . The RFA is supported in part by grants from the federal government of the United States...
reported that the officials had been released following a dawn raid by police, but more villagers had been detained. Shortly after, a similar event took place at another village in Guangdong, where villagers attempted to detain officials in a dispute over compensation for loss of farm land. Clearly the events in Dongzhou are not an isolated case but part of an ongoing wave of protests against land grabs in China, which Prime Minister Wen Jiabao
Wen Jiabao
Wen Jiabao is the sixth and current Premier and Party secretary of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, serving as China's head of government and leading its cabinet. In his capacity as Premier, Wen is regarded as the leading figure behind China's economic policy...
has acknowledged is an "historic error".
External links
- Shanwei Massacre – Feature coverage by The Epoch TimesThe Epoch TimesThe Epoch Times is a multi-language, international media organisation. As a newspaper, the Times has been publishing in Chinese since May 2000. It was founded in 1999 by supporters of the Falun Gong spiritual discipline....
- Guangdong Power Project Stalls Amid Land Dispute – Radio Free AsiaRadio Free AsiaRadio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation that operates a radio station and Internet news service. RFA was founded by an act of the US Congress and is operated by the Broadcasting Board of Governors . The RFA is supported in part by grants from the federal government of the United States...
- thestandard.com.hk
- http://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/12/15/china12281_txt.htmHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
press release]