乌坎

choi

(1) Latest first.
(a) BBC记者深入乌坎直击村民抗议. BBC Chinese, Dec 15, 2011
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/si ... 215_wukan_bbc.shtml
("村民告诉马腾 [Martin Patience]，现在就算是广东省政府的官员也不可信，只有希望中央政府出面干预，聆听村民的声音。马腾说，当地的青少年夜间会手持竹竿巡逻，他们说，这是防范警方入村骚扰村民。")
(b) 广东乌坎抗议信息从微博'消失.' BBC Chinese, Dec 15, 2011
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/si ... ukan_protests.shtml

(2) Andrew Jacobs, Village Revolts Over Inequities of Chinese Life. New York Times, Dec 15, 2011.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/1 ... 0village&st=cse

Quote:

"Spasms of social turmoil in China have become increasingly common, a reflection of the widening income gap and deepening unhappiness with official corruption and an unresponsive legal system. But the clashes in Wukan, which first erupted in September, are unusual for their longevity — and for the brazenness of the villagers as they call attention to their frustrations.

"In addition to greater compensation and a public accounting about that deal and earlier ones, the residents called for democratic elections to replace village officials, including the party secretary, who has been in power since the early 1980s.

"The Daily Telegraph of London, which first reported on the most recent skirmishes, said villagers had stockpiled crude weapons, including steel-tipped bamboo spears.


(3) Jeremy Page and Brian Spegele, Land Dispute in China Town Sparks Revolt; Guangdong standoff underlines anger. Wall Street Journal, Dec 15, 2011.

Quote:

A press officer for the local government denied that any land grab had occurred, although he did acknowledge that villagers were angry over a land issue.

"Such land disputes account for 65% of 'mass incidents'--the government's euphemism for large protests--in rural areas, according to Yu Jiangrong, a professor and expert on rural issues at the state-run Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Mr Yu estimates that local officials [throughout China] have seized about 16.6 million acres of rural land (more than the entire state of West Virginia) sine 1990s, depriving farmers of about two trillion yuan ($314 billion) due to discrepancy between the compensation they receive and the land's real market value.

"China's Land Ministry has also warned that misappropriation of farmlandhas brought the country dangerously close to the so-called red line of 296 million acres of arable land that the government believes it needs to feed China's 1.34 billion people.

"The standoff is particularly risky for Wang Yang, the Communist Party chief of Guangdong, who is vying with other candidates for promotion to the Politburo Standing Committee--the party's top decision-making body--in a once-a-decade leadership change next year.

My comment: There is no need to read the rest.