Villagers resist forced demolitions, violently clash with police

On Thursday May 7, 2015, in Dongqiao Lanxishe ethnic minority village, Jiaocheng District, Ningde City, Fujian Province, due to a forced demolition, police and villagers had a violent confrontation that resembled a battle zone.

Close to 100 police and others entered the village to forcibly demolish peasants’ homes. More than 30 villagers were hospitalized with injuries and many were detained. The police used “conventional weapons” such as shields, truncheons, fire extinguishers, and three-foot-long wooden batons. The villagers used bricks, brooms, and staffs to fight back. Videotape also reveals that the police used tear gas to disperse the protesters.

Lanxishe ethnic minority village is located in Ningde City east of the Dongqiao Experimental High School, on the southern side of Golden Orchid Bay. After the city expanded, the city government moved to the edge of the new urban area. Some villagers said that regarding the Golden Orchid Bay real estate development, the Jiaocheng District, Ningde City government developers hadn’t reached an agreement with the villagers regarding the demolition. The villagers sued in the city’s intermediate court. In a hearing about whether the government’s demolitions were illegal, the government lost the lawsuit.
http://www.bnn.co/news/gb/china/2015/05/201505112141.shtml