WASHINGTON, June 21, 2004�Some 300 farmers near the northern Chinese city of Xian whose land was sold for development without their consent have been targeted by criminal gangs and local officials who beat up and intimidate those who complain, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.
Attacks on residents of Dongcun Yizu village who opposed a decision to selltheir land in the Weiyang District of Xian have occurred since April 21. Onthat day, a local village official signed an agreement to sell the 68 mu (4.5 hectares) of farmland for a commercial property development without consulting the majority of farmers affected, local residents told RFA�s Mandarin service.
The attacks are continuing, peasant representative Zhang Zhengmin said in aninterview. "Last night a truckload of gangsters came to my sister�s house,which is across the street from my house, and smashed all the windows," hesaid. Zhang has been hiding in his house since being attacked himselfearlier this month.
In accounts described by two separate eyewitnesses, Zhang was attacked bytwo mobsters armed with knives following an assault by his deputy villagechief using his car.
"The deputy village secretary Su Guangqian drove his old VW Santana rightinto [Zhang]. Then he got out of the car, hit him across the face, and sworeat him, saying, �What do you think you�re doing, having a meeting�what areyou discussing?" local resident Guo Xugang, who is campaigning against theland sale, told RFA.
Another protester, Su Chunrang, was injured in the same attack. "On June 1,at 3 p.m., we went to petition," Su said. "I don�t know where they camefrom� They had two knives in their hands and tried to hit Zhang Zhengmin."
After Zhang�with a knife gash down his arm�escaped to his home and shut thedoor, Su Chunrang was also attacked. "I don�t know what kind of weapon theyhad in their hands, but they used it to hit my face. My face wassubsequently swollen, and both my eyes were bleeding. I was hospitalized fortwo days," Su Chunrang said.
Guo told RFA the decision was made after a carefully selected group of 13"representatives" had been kept under virtual house arrest in a high-classhotel and wined and dined, before being required to sign away the villagers�land. Guo was the only one of the 13 chosen who refused.
"We weren�t told where we were going beforehand, and � even though they gaveus three good meals a day and high-quality rooms to sleep in, in fact it wasa form of house arrest, an irregular way of carrying on," Guo said. "Ithought it was unreasonable. I was the only one who didn�t sign."
Su Chunrang said he had heard nothing of the proposals before the agreementwas signed on April 21. "We never had a meeting about this. We were neverable to say anything about this. Before, nobody had even heard about sellingthe land."
"If anyone gets in their way, then they�ll come along in a van and sort themout, beat them up. Nobody dares to get in their way. The government justturns a blind eye. They don�t care," he said.
When contacted by RFA, the village official who signed the agreement withthe 12 representatives, Zhu Qiyi, said everything was agreed, and that thefarmers had received generous compensation, at U.S.$725 per hectare. Askedwhy more than 120 farmers had already signed a petition against the deal,Zhu replied: "Because they are too damn poor, and they got greedy."
He confirmed that the 13 selected representatives had also been taken on anexpenses-paid trip to Vietnam. "The development company [Xian-based WeixingProperty Development Co.] paid for it," Zhu said. Dongcun Yizu has around 88households, and more than 300 residents.
Asked about Su and Guo�s allegations of beatings, deputy village chief SuGuangqian said only: "You should come in person, then I will talk to youface-to-face. The mobile signal isn�t good."
Following the attack on Zhang, the villagers reported the incident to thepolice. But they were told to apologize to the deputy village secretary. Alocal police officer told RFA that the problems resulted from the failure ofthe local farmers to take their complaints "through proper channels."
"They�re all the same, these peasants," an officer identified by hissurname, Jia, told RFA. "At the time they�re very happy to take the money,and then after a while they suddenly decide it�s not right and startcomplaining that they�ve got no money. This doesn�t fit in with the needs ofsocial development."
Meanwhile, Guo�s attempts to take the complaint on behalf of the some 300villagers of Dongcun Yizu through official channels have been stonewalled atevery turn, he said.
"We�ve got around 120 signatures from villagers over the age of legalresponsibility, 18. But most of them don�t dare to stand up and fight withthose people," Guo said.
RFA broadcasts news and information to Asian listeners who lack regularaccess to full and balanced reporting in their domestic media. Through itsbroadcasts and call-in programs, RFA aims to fill a critical gap in thelives of people across Asia. Created by Congress in 1994 and incorporated in1996, RFA currently broadcasts in Burmese, Cantonese, Khmer, Korean, Lao,Mandarin, the Wu dialect, Vietnamese, Tibetan (Uke, Amdo, and Kham), andUyghur. It adheres to the highest standards of journalism and aims toexemplify accuracy, balance and fairness in its editorial content. Visitwww.rfa.org to learn more about RFA or to listen to RFA broadcasts. #####