4,000 Villagers Protest Land Grabs, Elections

Marching in the street holding banners that read "Give Back My Land," "Anti-Dictatorship" and "Anti-Corruption" on November 21, about 4,000 villagers in Southern China's Guangdong Province protested what they said were illegal land seizures and rigged local elections.

The peaceful demonstration by Wukan village residents ended before noon, with about 400 staging a sit-in in front of the Lufeng County office. Protesters left when acting Lufeng Mayor Qiu Jingxiong and other officials emerged, promising to look into the villagers' complaints.