Thousands of residents of a restive village in southern China cast their ballots on Wednesday, marking the start of a gradual restoration of grassroots rights following violent confrontations with authorities over land grabs.
The rebellion last year against abuse of power and the illegal sale of hundreds of hectares of farmland in coastal Wukan has become a benchmark of rural defiance against land grabs and corruption that blight villages nationwide.
Villagers gathered in the morning sunshine outside a school where the election is being held. Seven steel ballot boxes were laid out in the concrete school courtyard before a red election banner, as patriotic songs poured from speakers.
Xue Jianwan, daughter of village protest organiser Xue Jinbo, who died in police custody last year sparking further protests, visited her father's memorial in the village square before coming to vote. Full story...
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The rebellion last year against abuse of power and the illegal sale of hundreds of hectares of farmland in coastal Wukan has become a benchmark of rural defiance against land grabs and corruption that blight villages nationwide.
Villagers gathered in the morning sunshine outside a school where the election is being held. Seven steel ballot boxes were laid out in the concrete school courtyard before a red election banner, as patriotic songs poured from speakers.
Xue Jianwan, daughter of village protest organiser Xue Jinbo, who died in police custody last year sparking further protests, visited her father's memorial in the village square before coming to vote. Full story...
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