Veterans protest again in Beijing over unpaid benefits
About 500 ex soldiers "besiege" the PLA headquarters in the capital. War veterans refuse to give up, but the government does not appear to be listening.
Beijing (AsiaNews) – Two months after the first public protest, hundreds of Chinese military veterans travelled to Beijing once again to demand unpaid benefits the government owes them.
On December 28 2016, about 500 veterans – aged 40 to 50 years – “besieged” the headquarters of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the capital.
After October’s unsuccessful protest, the veterans, some of whom fought in the war with Vietnam (1979) and during Korean conflict (1950-1953) decided to go back to the streets and make their voices heard singing army songs and waving banners.
Their demands remain the same: pensions, social security, employment and other benefits promised to them when they were in the services.
Two months ago, six veterans’ representatives met with PLA officials but the latter refused to budge.
After 24 hours, officials announced that President Xi Jinping had ordered the deputy chiefs of governments or party committees in the provinces involved to come and ‘settle your issues specifically’.”
Soon after, the police began to disperse the protesters with promises that their grievances would be heeded. The authorities ended up removing thousands of peaceful demonstrators.
Wang Guorong, a veteran from Yiyang of Hunan province who did not take part in the demonstration in October, said that a fellow townsman Teng Xingqiu, and several other veterans he knew, disappeared afterwards.
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