Chinese Villagers Clash With Police Over Industrial Pollution
HONG KONG—
Chinese police have violently
cracked down on a local protest against industrial pollution in Jiangxi
province, causing an unknown number of injuries.
Online video and photographs show
thousands of villagers in China’s southern province of Jiangxi marching earlier
this week to the industrial area of Wannian County, demanding the closure of
several chemical plants invested in by the government.
Protesters held banners calling for
“national action against pollution,” and “remove chemical enterprises that
cause pollution.”According to local residents
speaking with VOA Tuesday, authorities sent in thousands of police to form a
human wall in front of a factory before beating protesters with batons. They
say authorities also fired tear gas and pepper spray at the crowd, causing
demonstrators to retreat and continue a standoff with police from across the road. A villager who did not want to be
named told VOA Tuesday that one of the protesters from her village was hit five
times in the back by rubber bullets.
“The government cracked down on us,
won’t allow demonstrations; many ordinary people were hurt,” she said.
A video online shows police firing
tear gas on demonstrators gathered in front of a building. Smoke billowed
from the scene, with people screaming. Photographs show some people were
severely beaten before being sent to local hospitals. The thousands of demonstrators were
from nearby villages and counties suffering from pollution caused by the
chemical plants located in Wannian County. There is no information about
how many people were injured, or whether anyone was arrested. Wannian county government made two
announcements on its web account accusing the demonstrators of trying to break
into the plants. The government said nothing about police opening fire.
Instead, it said the police exercised restraint, and tried to persuade people
to leave.
The government also said the
situation may escalate, because some villagers threaten to return home and
bring steel pipes and other weapons to confront police and officials.
It was the latest in a series of
demonstrations against pollution caused by chemical plants in Wannian County
Local villagers complain they have
long suffered from industrial pollution. They believe the Le An River, which is
the source of their drinking water, is heavily polluted due to a large amount
of chemical spills, direct discharge and industrial accidents.
“We all drink from that river. As a
result, kids got rash; we also got rash. We used to have lots of fish in the
river, and then they all died. Several old people in the village have been
diagnosed with lung cancer,” said one woman.Local people said they have appealed
to the government for help but to no avail.
0 comments:
Post a Comment
Please insert your comments here