2008 Weng'an riot
The 2008 Weng'an riot () was a riot on June 28, 2008 involving tens of thousands of residents in Weng'an County, Qiannan Buyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, in the Guizhou province of Southwest China. Rioters smashed government buildings and torched several police cars to protest against an alleged police cover-up of a girl's death. Incident. Alleged rape and murder. A 16-year-old local girl by the name of Li Shufen (李树芬, born in July 1991) was found dead in a river. She had been earlier spotted with two younger men who allegedly had familial ties  with the local public security bureau. Li Shufen's family and friends have alleged that she had been raped and murdered by the son of a prominent Weng'an official and another youth and that her corpse had then been thrown into the river. The subsequent media release denied the claims, and stated the two young men and one young woman involved were of local farmers' families. Defending the coffin. The parents were guarding the girl's coffin day and night in fear the local police might attempt to tamper with the evidence. "We won't accept an evil deal," say  parents. The parents reported there had already been two attempts to steal the dead body. An additional 100 local residents helped them guard the coffin. Claims. Police. The girl's dead body was pulled from the river on June 22, 2008. Initial police report said that the girl was drowned or jumped into the river and committed suicide. A document submitted by the local government stated the girl was unhappy with life because her parents favored her elder brother. Girl's family and relatives. Relatives of the girl blamed the local police for shoddy investigation and possible corruption. One of  the parents said a police officer threatened them, telling them: "Don't even try to file a lawsuit; there [is] no justice in this world." Three murder suspects. Guizhou's official media published the first interview with three of the girl's friends (the murder suspects) on July 4, 2008. They were the last people to see the girl alive. Protests. About 500 middle school students had gone to protest at the public security bureau, but they were turned away and beaten. Rumors were circulating that the girl's uncle, a local teacher, had been beaten when he questioned the  police, and had died from his injuries at the local hospital but this was not confirmed. This roused an angry mob of thousands of people, who began overturning cars and setting fire to government buildings, including the local Chinese Communist Party headquarters. The Associated Press reported "30,000 angry citizens swarmed the streets". The riot lasted 7 hours with 150 people injured. About 160 office buildings and 40 cars were torched. Role of Chinese bloggers. Zhou, as well as many other like-minded Chinese netizens, provided on-the-scene information on events like this, as a means to give voice to  ordinary Chinese whose stories get overlooked or censored in a country where all the media is under the control of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party. Roland Soong of East South West North, a well-known website for Chinese-to-English translations, wrote: Arrests. Authorities rounded up 300 people accused of taking part in the riot. Other sources have said 200 rioters were arrested. Over 1,500 paramilitary and riot police were dispatched to the county. Police detained 59 people for their alleged roles. Government response. Photographs as well as comments on the Guizhou protest in chatrooms and forums  were quickly deleted by the mainland Internet censors. The government launched a campaign to defuse protest ahead of the Beijing Olympics to continue projecting an image of social harmony and stability. An "Olympics Stability Drive" was announced after the incident. Public security officials in Guizhou offered a total of 9,000 yuan (about $1,300 or £700 or €800) to the parents of the teenage girl, with 3,000 paid by each suspect. The father said "We will never accept an evil deal like this, we need to seek justice for our daughter." Guizhou's Communist Party chief, Shi Zongyuan  (), estimated that prior use of force by local officials have contributed to the widespread discontentment. He further said the deep rooted reasons behind the protest were "rude and roughhand solutions" by local authorities to solve disputes over mines, demolition of homes for public projects, relocation of residents for reservoir construction, and many other issues. Several local officials, including Weng'an's Party chief, were dismissed for breach of duty on July 3 and 4, 2008. Investigation. The government "Guizhou Daily" newspaper claimed the family was too emotionally unstable to accept the findings. The Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said  three men were questioned, but were let go. Xinhua News Agency reported on July 1, 2008 that the investigation would be reopened. The provincial government sent 10 criminal investigators and forensic experts to re-investigate the death. The autopsy was carried out by five experts from the Guizhou public security department and the Higher People's Court. After three autopsies, there were no signs of any sexual attack according to state officials. The girl's father, Li Xiuzhong, did not accept the autopsy findings. He said "There is nothing I can do, they have sent 10 officials to my home , watching me day and night. They told me what to say when the reporters interviewed me. They threatened me that [if I said anything wrong], then another riot can happen and I must bear in mind that national security is at stake." Li Shufen was buried in her hometown about 20 km from Weng'an. Provincial authority said that every year, about 600 to 800 criminal cases take place in the county, but half of them are not solved.