The Two-Edged Sword of Vigilante Justice

ESWN led me to this story from the Washington Post.  It describes how and why there is growing conflict between the villagers in rural China and government authorities.  Justice can be swift and violent on both sides.  

     The violence in Yantang, although small in scale, was part of what officials say is a growing trend of assaults against police, officials and government property in China. The Public Security Ministry estimates that more than 1,800 policemen were attacked in the line of duty in the first six months of this year, sharply up from previous years. A ministry spokesman, Wu Heping, was quoted by the official party organ, the People's Daily, as saying that 23 policemen were killed in a broad range of clashes with "criminal suspects or people intending to interfere with law enforcement through violence."