Christian Science Monitor: A Chinese village takes a stand against graft
Locals in the village of Xiantang have occupied their village hall for the past 14 weeks to protest what they say is official graft.
Xiantang, China – On the face of it, the giant red banner strung across the entrance to the village hall here, urging support for Beijing's campaign against official corruption, seems unexceptional.
In fact, it is the rallying point for what may be the longest sustained act of defiance against Communist Party authorities in recent Chinese history. It is also emblematic of the enormous difficulties that the Chinese government faces in retaining legitimacy in ordinary people's eyes.
The slogan is not the work of the mayor of this quiet southern village of around 3,500 souls, nor any of his aides. Rather, it was daubed by angry residents who have been occupying the village hall for more than three months in protest against local leaders who they say have stolen millions of dollars in public funds.
The occupiers are not armed insurrectionists. They are mostly old people who complain that the village committee, led by the local secretary of the Communist Party, took over the land they had farmed, leased or sold it to developers, and kept the money for themselves.
"It was our land. It was sold, but we did not get any money," says Lai Niu, who ekes out a living selling chicken. "Government officials and businessmen work together and ignore us villagers." …
One development theory says that prosperity tends to drive the emergence of the rule of law and not vice versa. As people reach a certain level of prosperity, they are more invested in keeping it. Others seeing the opportunity for prosperity want a fair playing field to pursue it. Prosperity leads to demands for justice and order. Is that happening here? Hopefully.
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