Fujian Villagers Take Inspiration from Successful Wukan Protest

Protests over land grabs by local officials have continued in southern China into the New Year. Hundreds of residents from Xibian Village in Fujian Province's Jinjiang City staged their latest demonstration on Monday, demanding local Communist Party officials return their land.

The villagers here have taken inspiration from thousands of protestors from Wukan in neighboring Guangdong Province. Protestors held up banners reading "We're Learning from Wukan" and "Protecting the Future of our Children and Grandchildren."

In December, Wukan residents won rare concessions from Chinese authorities after they temporarily evicted all Communist officials from the town, and staged a week-long demand for justice.

Xibian villagers say their Communist Party Secretary and his three brothers have been misappropriating land and profiting from development projects. Despite having protested over the issue since as early as September 2010, villagers say authorities have never addressed their claims.

Villagers' hopes were renewed after the apparent success of Wukan residents. One man told the Epoch Times Newspaper their latest demands were finally heard, with one of the Party Secretary's brothers agreeing to provide compensation for the lost land.

A Xibian Village Committee staff member declined to offer information when we contacted them.

[Xibian Village Committee Staff Member]:
"Um, go verify this yourself, go find this out by yourself. If I tell you what's going on internally here, it'll be hard for us in the future. Some things are not easy for us to say."

Tens of thousands of protests take place in China each year. The communist regime refers to them as "mass incidents." Many of them are sparked by residents angry over corruption or unfair treatment by local authorities.