Thousands in China protest after officials beat vendor, passer-by

BEIJING: Thousands took to the streets of a Chinese city to protest at the beating of a vendor and of a passer-by who took photos of the incident, reports said Sunday.
The incident at Lingxi city in Cangnan county in the eastern province of Zhejiang is the latest instance of public outrage triggered by the behavior of China’s “chengguan,” quasi-police officials who enforce local regulations and have a reputation for brutality.
Five chengguan were injured in the protest, with two in critical condition, the state-run China Daily newspaper reported Sunday. The passer-by, a man surnamed Huang, was in stable condition.
According to an account posted by the Cangnan government on its official microblog Saturday night, the incident began when several chengguan in Lingxi demanded that a vendor stop “illegally” selling gas stoves and other items, which they said were blocking the sidewalk.
Huang, who happened to be passing by, began taking photos, and “after the officers demanded he stop, to no avail, both sides clashed,” the official report said.
Huang was injured in the altercation and taken to hospital, the Cangnan government said.
Internet rumors about “urban management workers beating a man to death” began circulating in the afternoon, triggering a mass gathering of onlookers during which five officers were “besieged and beaten.”