Local bullies

Last week a stone bridge under construction in Fenghuang county, Hunan province, collapsed killing dozens of people. The exact number is still unknown. The South China Morning Post reported on August 18 that officials attacked journalists who were investigating the disaster. Among the journalists were some from the communist party's mouthpiece People's Daily.

This is just incredible. Who do these local bullies think they are? Those corrupt criminals no doubt got bribes from the construction company, which used shoddy materials leading to the deaths of workers and bystanders. And they have the temerity to attack reporters form the People's Daily in Beijing because they want to hide the truth. They accused the Chinese reporters of "illegally conducting interviews". But this "crime" has already been abolished for foreign correspondents, who don't need any authorization and only need to obtain permission from the people they interview. How is it possible that reporters from the People's Daily - the newspaper of the Central Committee - are accused by local nobodies of "illegally conducting interviews"? One of the attackers was the director of Fenghuang's agricultural bureau.

These local bullies believe they are the boss in their local kingdom and can do whatever they like. Laws and courts are not going to solve the problem, because the local judges are the buddies of the local bullies.

Those local kingdoms all over China make live very difficult for the people. The profiteering local bosses and capitalists should be brought to justice. But what are the central authorities in Beijing going to do about it? They are too afraid to rely on the people and launch a mass movement.