SOME of China’s leading contemporary artists took to the streets of downtown Beijing to protest against the demolition of their art district and at what they described as abusive treatment by security hired by property developers to throw them out.
Outspoken artist and architect Ai Weiwei confirmed by telephone that the demonstrators marched from Chang’an Avenue in downtown Beijing.
They were carrying posters reading “Civil Rights!” and “Capital Beijing, brutal demolition!” and were trying to get to Tiananmen Square, but were stopped by police nearly two kilometres away.
The artists are based in the Chuangyi Zhengyang Art Zone in Chaoyang in the east of the capital, one of a number of areas rented out as cheap studio space and living quarters by artists.
The artists say five trucks loaded with about 100 men wearing green military-style overcoats and masks drove into their district at about 2am on Monday and started destroying the studios.
Some of the artists say they were forced to kneel and were beaten with clubs. One Japanese artist, Iwama Satoshi, received stitches on his head.
Police are investigating nine assaults allegedly carried out when the artists tried to prevent the men from wrecking their studios, the state-run Global Times newspaper reported.
The artists said they had signed contracts with landlords, some as late as October, but the developers had issued notices demanding they leave by December 5th to make way for redevelopment. Power and water were cut off.
There is a lot of anger in China about land grabs, which have often involved the collusion of corrupt officials with estate agents keen to cash in on China’s booming property market.
Local authorities denied any involvement in the action, and Li Jiemin, deputy party chief of Jinzhan Township, said: “I can assure you the township government had nothing to do with the incident.”
Mr Ai is much in the headlines for his dissenting views. This month he wrote a Wall Street Journal column in support of Google’s stance on censorship and internet attacks in China.