BEIJING (AP) Residents in a southern Chinese town protested for a second day Sunday against a proposed garbage incinerator, according to witnesses, as police said ringleaders of the earlier demonstrations involving thousands that saw clashes with police should surrender.
Hundreds of people gathered on a long street in front of the offices of the government in Guangdong province's Boluo county, with anti-riot police standing by, three residents said. They only gave their surnames, Chen, Huang and Wang, out of fear of reprisals from authorities.
The protest is the latest to highlight how Chinese have become increasingly wary of the environmental hazards of industrial projects, but still lack public forums to voice their concerns and affect the government's decision-making process.
Chen said he was among protesters who marched about 2 kilometers (about a mile) to the county government office Sunday morning. At its peak, he estimated 3,000 to 4,000 people took part and he saw police with shields and batons take away three people who had thrown water bottles at them.
At the county offices, an official came out with a loudspeaker to tell the crowds that the government had not yet decided on a location for the incinerator, Chen said, adding that crowds had begun to disperse. "We have expressed our opinion," he said by phone.