A village dares to stand in China’s way

Something extraordinary has happened in the village of Wukan. For the first time on record, the Chinese Communist Party has lost all control, with the population of 20,000 now in open revolt.

The last of a dozen party officials fled this southern fishing village on Monday after thousands of people blocked armed police, standing firm against tear gas and water cannon.

Since then, the police have retreated some three miles, setting up a roadblock to prevent food and water from entering and villagers from leaving. Wukan’s fishing fleet, its main source of income, has also been stopped from leaving harbour.

The plan appears to be to lay siege to Wukan and choke a rebellion that began three months ago when an angry mob, incensed at having the village’s land sold off, rampaged through the streets and overturned cars.

Although China suffers an estimated 180,000 “mass incidents” a year, it is unheard of for the party to sound a retreat. Thousands of residents, incensed at the death in police custody of one of their leaders, gathered for a second day. The news of Wukan’s loss has been censored inside China.