Large protest erupts in Chinese city over teens' beating of girl

A large protest erupted in the south-western Chinese city of Jiangyou, videos on social media showed, after the beating of a young girl by three other teenagers sparked public outrage.

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BEIJING - A large protest erupted in the south-western Chinese city of Jiangyou, videos on social media showed, after the beating of a young girl by three other teenagers sparked public outrage.

Protests are rare in China, where any and all opposition to the ruling Communist Party - and anything seen as a threat to the civil order - is swiftly quashed.

But bullying in the country's ultra-competitive education system has touched a public nerve, with a high-profile killing in 2024 sparking national debate over how the law deals with juvenile offenders.

On Aug 4, the police said two teenage girls were being sent to a correctional school for assaulting and verbally abusing a 14-year-old girl surnamed Lai.