Chinese Man Hacked to Death After Protesting Land-Grab

In a shocking display of brutality, thugs hacked to death an elderly Chinese man in his home last week because he protested against a land-grab by a local developer.

Villager Qiao Baoshan, 66, of northern Shanxi Province, was twice beaten by thugs at the behest of the Yangzhou Real Estate Development Company, his son Qiao Yongqiang told The Epoch Times. The younger Qiao said his father was protesting the company’s “illegal” occupation of local villagers’ land before the thugs killed him with axes after breaking and entering into his home early in the morning on Nov. 25.

Qiao told The Epoch Times that some six men were involved in his father’s death—all wearing masks, according to his mother. One of the men held a knife to his mother’s throat and put his hand over her mouth so she could not scream or move.

“They hacked him ruthlessly for more than 10 minutes with axes. When it became obvious that he was dying, they left,” the younger Qiao said.

When Qiao arrived on the scene, he took his father to the hospital, but he was pronounced dead on arrival. Describing his father, Qiao said his body had many gaping wounds, was covered in blood, the main artery in his leg was cut open, his thumb was cut off, and his leg was hacked open, showing the bone.

Qiao said that five of the men were arrested, while one was still at large. However, mainland Chinese media have not yet reported on the case, with only Chinese netizens spreading information through social media sites, some of which have since been censored by the government.

The son posted articles on the Internet calling for justice to be meted out in his father’s death, showingphotos of his dead father (warning, graphic image), which triggered an online backlash against his assailants. Qiao believes that the main culprit in his father’s death is the manager of a construction site paid for by the Yangzhou development company.

He said that five years ago, the Yangzhou development firm occupied some 3.3 acres of land that was owned by villagers from Zhoujiazhuang. His father protested the occupation because the local villagers received no compensation and even appealed to local government officials, who did nothing until the villagers demolished several buildings that had been built by the Yangzhou development company.

Apparently angered by the government’s decision, the developer sent a messenger to speak with the elder Qiao, hoping to buy his silence, but he categorically refused the offer. Hours later, the developer sent the six men to violently kill him.

Qiao’s death underscores China’s problem with forced evictions and land grabs in recent years. Local officials, colluding with development companies, have evicted numerous Chinese people from their homes before seizing the land to make up for budget shortfalls, according to an October report from Amnesty International.

Read the original Chinese article.

With reporting by Jack Phillips.

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