Chengguan's thuggish behavior gets out of hand in China's cities

A March 31 article in The Economist reported an outbreak of civilian violence in the city of Kunming in response to the attack on an illegal street vendor by the chengguan, a lower sector of the Chinese police force with a reputation for thuggish behavior. The chengguan is reputed to be responsible for several crackdowns on mildly illegal activity within cities like illegal solicitation and house demolition. There have been several examples of the chengguan's brutish behavior when dealing with urban issues, such as the 2008 killing of a man attempting to film a group of Chinese officers halting a rural protest against chemical waste. Several urban workers have been beaten to the point of brain damage or death for activities such as utilizing a bicycle as an illegal taxi or peddling wares on the street. There has been a strong outbreak of protest among university students and homeowners protesting house demolition, and even law professors have appealed to the Chinese legislative body to curb the authority of the chengguan. In response to the Kunming incident, the press took varying stances, with the government's account that the violence was "a lie," dissent against the brutal nature of the chengguan, and criticism of the Kunming officials for releasing minimal details of the outbreak.

The growing resentment to the thuggish authority of the chengguan indicates the Chinese people coming to question the legitimacy of their local governmental bodies, and as a result, the party's interests for their people. The strain between Beijing and the local government presents the challenges of the Chinese government to control such a populous and large nation. The shady nature of chengguan dealings tarnishes the Chinese government's legitimacy and demonstrates a lack of transparency within the party regime. As unrest has moved from the countryside to within the cities, the added stressors on the government may prove to be too much to resist political change.


Photo credit: fredalix, http://www.flickr.com/photos/fredalix/3877604826/


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