A protest in
eastern China over a plan to build a waste incinerator turned violent, with
state media reporting that at least 10 demonstrators and 29 police officers
were injured in clashes. Demonstrators on Saturday overturned 30 vehicles, set
two police cars on fire and blocked a highway linking Hangzhou with another
city, the official Xinhua News Agency said. A protester and a policeman were
seriously injured. Environmental protests have been on the rise in China, with
the public becoming increasingly critical of pollution and health hazards from
industry. Such concerns resonate well among Chinese,butalso pose a
serious political challenge to the ruling Communist Party.