Something extraordinary has happened in the Chinese village of Wukan.
For the first time on record, the Chinese Communist party has lost all control, with the population of 20,000 in this southern fishing village now in open revolt.
The last of Wukan’s dozen party officials fled on Mondayafter thousands of people blocked armed police from retaking the village, standing firm against tear gas and water cannons.
Since then, the police have retreated to a roadblock, some three miles away, in order to prevent food and water from entering, and villagers from leaving. Wukan’s fishing fleet, its main source of income, has also been stopped from leaving harbour.
The plan appears to be to lay siege to Wukan and choke a rebellion which began three months ago when an angry mob, incensed at having the village’s land sold off, rampaged through the streets and overturned cars.
Although China suffers an estimated 180,000 “mass incidents” a year, it is unheard of for the Party to sound a retreat.
But on Tuesday The Daily Telegraph managed to gain access through a tight security cordon and witnessed the new reality in this coastal village.
Thousands of Wukan’s residents, incensed at the death of one of their leaders in police custody, gathered for a second day in front of a triple-roofed pagoda that serves as the village hall.
For five hours they sat on long benches, chanting, punching the air in unison and working themselves into a fury.
At the end of the day, a fifteen minute period of mourning for their fallen villager saw the crowd convulsed in sobs and wailing for revenge against the local government.
“Return the body! Return our brother! Return our farmland! Wukan has been wronged! Blood debt must be paid! Where is justice?” the crowd screamed out.
Wukan’s troubles began in September, when the villagers’ collective patience snapped at an attempt to take away their land and sell it to property developers.
“Almost all of our land has been taken away from us since the 1990s but we were relaxed about it before because we made our money from fishing,” said Yang Semao, one of the village elders. “Now, with inflation rising, we realise we should grow more food and that the land has a high value.”
THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT A CHINESE ARMY GENERAL RECENTLY WARNED ABOUT AND THAT WE POSTED ON 2 WEEKS AGO:
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 04, 2011
UH-OH: CHI-COMS ADMIT FEAR OF MASSIVE SOCIAL UNREST AS THIER ECONOMY FALTERS
BBC:I FEAR THEY WILL MAKE TIENANMEN LOOK LIKE A PICNIC.China's security chief has warned that the government needs better methods to deal with social unrest due to a slowing economy.
Zhou Yongkang, a member of the politburo, asked provincial officials for improved "social management".
China has seen an increase in labour unrest in recent weeks.
The comments are a sign that the Chinese government is worried that another slowdown could spark public anger.
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