The escalating political pressure and economic downturn in China have led to boiling public grievances and frequent social conflicts. On November 24th, rumors spread online that someone drove a car to ram into the entrance of the Beihai City government, facing resistance from officials, with reports of intense gunfire heard at the scene. The news has been blocked, but local residents have confirmed the incident to media outlets.
A video circulating online shows a blue sedan ramming into the entrance of the Beihai City government on the 24th, being struck by a black armored patrol vehicle, resulting in a collision. Gunfire-like sounds were reportedly heard at the scene, with smoke filling the air.
After the blue sedan was stopped by the impact, law enforcement and security personnel with shields surrounded the vehicle, vigorously hitting it with batons. Subsequently, a man wearing a white outfit was dragged out of the sedan and taken away.
Many onlookers at the scene were discussing and taking photos.
Journalists couldn’t find any information on Weibo. However, as of November 25th, on the Douyin platform, numerous search records from netizens could still be seen, including queries such as “video of Beihai City government being rammed,” “latest news on Beihai City government today,” “Beihai City government,” “accident scene at the entrance of Beihai City government,” “Beihai City government entrance,” “Beihai City government Li Li,” “Beihai City government official website,” “reasons for pursuit at the entrance of Beihai City government,” “latest news today at Beihai City government hand grenade,” and “large number of residents at the entrance of Beihai City government.”
A resident of Beihai, Ms. Wang, confirmed the incident to journalists, mentioning that it occurred around 5 pm the day before. She stated that someone drove to ram into the government’s entrance, following which the authorities swiftly blocked all online information. She mentioned, “The blockage was quick in this area. It was very strict, nothing could be posted. (Video), although I have it, I can’t post it.”
Ms. Wang mentioned that firefighters and armed police arrived at the scene, but there were no casualties. She couldn’t confirm whether shots were fired.
As for why the driver rammed into the government, she was unsure, but she felt there must have been grievances involved, stating that such an action wouldn’t have been without reason. She commented, “All information is now blocked. Most people dare not speak. It’s unclear why this happened, and we still don’t know.”
Ms. Wang noted, “This incident is the first of its kind in Beihai. It’s the first since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, so the authorities are taking it very seriously. It’s a big deal, the mayor of Beihai has just taken office recently, not even a month yet.”
She believed that the current chaos in China is due to the deteriorating system, which is becoming increasingly ineffective, wasting efforts. She added that the general public understands this very well.
A search on the internet revealed that the current mayor of Beihai City, Li Gang, assumed office on October 17th this year.
Journalists also contacted a store near the Beihai City government to gather information, where one person resorted to swearing but did not deny the incident. Calls made to the Beihai City government’s phone and the fixed-line numbers of surrounding businesses all resulted in busy tones, and attempts to dial the mobile numbers of neighboring businesses went unanswered.
Overseas social media users commented:
“Each similar incident is pushed by the CCP.”
“Every wrongdoing has a doer, and this time they finally hit the right target.”
“They finally hit the target, Chinese people, keep it up.”
“They finally understand the lesson that ‘you can ram the government with a car, not the school.'”
“Brave one, Chinese people are on the verge of collapse. Under the oppressive environment of arrests and silencing by the CCP, some have begun to realize that the enemy is the government, created by the CCP. Everyone is suffering, and hopefully the brave one remains safe.”
(Note: Contributions to this article were made by Epoch Times reporter Gu Xiaohua)