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Chinese Tax Spat Sparks Riot, Mass Protest


Chinese Tax Spat Sparks Riot, Mass Protest
Chinese Tax Spat Sparks Riot, Mass Protest

Anger over tax collections has led to clashes between enraged business people and riot police in eastern China.

The police marched into the town of Zhili, in Zhejiang province, late Thursday to disperse protesters who had marched on government buildings, thrown rocks and torched and overturned vehicles.

State-run media said the riot broke out after the owner of a children's clothing company refused to pay his taxes, and then got a group together to attack a tax collector. Websites run by the Chinese government said as many as 600 people took part in the initial riot, but that the disturbance grew quickly and persisted late into the night.

The state-run Huzhou Online said at least five people have been arrested and more than 20 others detained.

There are scattered, unconfirmed reports of injuries.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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