Home>News Center>Life
         
 

Rails seizure shakes a nation's conscience
(Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2005-10-25 16:19

Police has detained eight villagers who seized state-owned rail tracks and other facilities for their own use in Yongdeng County, a less-developed area of Northwest China’s Gansu Province on Sunday.


More than 100 farmers and their children dismantle and grab a 600-metre-long outdated segment of the iron rails in Yongdeng County, in Northwest China’s Gansu Province on October 23, 2005. [sina]

The Lanzhou Morning Post reported Monday that more than 100 farmers and their children began to dismantle and grab a 600-metre-long outdated segment of the iron rails Sunday morning, which the rail authorities no longer used.

A total of six appalling graphics, showing the mass seizure scene, have been shown on the popular sina.com and sohu.com portal Web pages, triggering a wild public response, and a heated discussion.

Interestingly, the majority of the online readers side with the farmers, simply because they might be poor, left far behind the urban noveau rich.


Railway worker sits beside the rail and three farmers dismantle the iron rails not far away. [sina]


One reader sympathizing with the farmers said the villagers “as a matter of fact” went to recycle the rail scrap, “changing wastes into valuables.”

Many questioned the ever-growing wealth gap between the haves and have-nots. However, some criticized the looting residents as not being law-abiding.

The seizure happened at the Da Lu rail station, in Yondeng’s Kushui Town. Hearing the news the 600-metre old trails were to be abandoned, local villagers flocked to the station with pickaxes and ripping bars. Some were witnessed bagging the iron material home.

Scrap iron and steel can be sold at a discount price.

The newspaper also reported the railway workers at the station did not try to stop the farmers from looting. One picture showed a rail worker sitting at the scene, motionless.


Page: 12345



Pregnant Holmes announces marriage time
Beauties and dishes
Super girl Li Yuchun
  Today's Top News     Top Life News
 

Anniversary of Taiwan's recovery celebrated

 

   
 

Bird flu outbreak in Anhui reined in

 

   
 

Singapore PM: China's growth 'good for Asia'

 

   
 

US to transfer nuclear reactor tech to China

 

   
 

Koizumi still hopes for summit with China

 

   
 

China bans harmful plastic wrappers

 

   
  China puts glory before honour at National Games
   
  Chinese diners spend 800 billion yuan annually
   
  Nujiang dam project tests environmental policy
   
  Qing-Dynasty vase fetches record price
   
  Rails seizure shakes a nation's conscience
   
  Poor migrant wins lottery for daughter
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  Feature  
  Could China's richest be the tax cheaters?  
Advertisement