Several thousand angry villagers in southern China clashed with police during protests over local land requisitions and village elections, police and reports said Thursday.
Up to 17 people were injured when around two thousand villagers in Guangdong province clashed with police in front of the Shadui township government offices on Tuesday, Hong Kong's Apple Daily reported.
"There's was such a clash between villagers and police, it happened the day before yesterday (Tuesday)," a policeman in Shadui township told AFP by phone.
"I can't tell you more because we have not got enough imformation about it. We are discussing … we will issue a statement."
Villagers were upset that local officals banned some villagers from voting in local elections, the paper said.
The ban was implemented after the villagers had protested government compensation for farmlands taken over for development in the township.
Over 300 police were dispatched to quell the crowd when the clashes occurred, it said.
Land confiscation by local officials has become one of the fiercest social issues facing Chinese society as ordinary people accuse officials of colluding with developers to enrich themselves in lucrative land deals.
In China, all land belongs to the state, giving local leaders tremendous power over land use rights.
Although China's economy has boomed for nearly 25 years, a widening gap between rich and poor has played a leading role in growing social unrest nation wide.
The number of "public order disturbances" throughout China rose by 6.6 percent to 87,000 last year, according to official statistics.
