Chinese riot over handling of girl's killing

BEIJING: Thousands of people have rioted in a county in southwest China, setting fire to government buildings and overturning cars in angry protests over the official handling of the death of a local teenage girl, according to a human rights group, state news media and videotapes of the events.

The protests in the county of Weng'an in Guizhou Province are another reminder of how quickly public anger can ignite in China over cases of perceived official corruption and malfeasance. For the past few years, public discontent has erupted into small demonstrations and violence across the country.

The protests in Weng'an on Saturday appear to have been larger, reportedly involving thousands of residents, including children. News agencies reported that protesters clashed with paramilitary police officers sent to the county.

In March, thousands of paramilitary police were sent to quell violent anti-Chinese demonstrations in the Tibetan capital, Lhasa. Videos from Weng'an posted on YouTube showed groups of protesters standing and watching as fires engulfed a local government building.

The Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, a Hong Kong-based human rights group, reported that the riot was incited by the case of a teenage girl who was reportedly raped and murdered.

Relatives of the 16-year-old girl blamed the local police for a shoddy investigation and also claimed possible corruption, the group reported. The family said the teenager disappeared after being seen with two young men with family ties to the local public security bureau, the report said.

By Saturday, the human rights group reported, about 500 middle school students had gone to protest at the public security bureau. But the students were turned away and beaten, a move that immediately roused an angry mob of thousands of people who began setting fire to buildings and overturning cars.

The Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy reported that one person died, 150 were injured and 200 were detained. Officials in the province could not be reached to confirm these figures.

By Sunday morning, a local resident told The Associated Press that the police were using megaphones to urge the crowds to leave while local television channels were calling on people involved in the protests to surrender to the authorities.

"Thick black smoke billowed everywhere," one resident told The Associated Press. "The incident shows that the social order around here is not stable."

The state-run news agency Xinhua confirmed the violence in a brief article and said the situation had stabilized. Referring to the investigation into the girl's death, the news agency reported, "Some people who did not know about the exact context of what had happened were instigated to mob the police station and the office buildings of the county government and Communist Party committee."

The demonstrations were less than six weeks before Beijing hosts the Olympic Games, and security officials are deeply worried about potential outbreaks of unrest across China.

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