On October 19, a video went viral showing a group of sheep blocking the entrance of the Xincheng District Committee of Chang’an District, Xi’an, Shaanxi. The incident sparked a heated discussion online, especially with one sheep seen kneeling on its front legs, amusingly dubbed by netizens as “kneeling for petition.” The commotion arose when a drainage channel at a breeding farm belonging to Xiangyang Village, under the jurisdiction of this district committee, was destroyed by a construction team, causing the sheep farm to be flooded. Consequently, the breeder rushed the flock of sheep to the committee’s entrance.
According to mainland media reports, on October 19, a large number of sheep gathered in front of the Xincheng District Committee, hindering normal access through the gate. Staff at the committee confirmed the incident, stating that the sheep were promptly dispersed and the matter is being addressed.
A journalist from mainland China learned through interviews on October 20 that the sheep belonged to a breeding farm in Xiangyang Village, operated by a man surnamed Li. A village official surnamed Zhang stated that due to personal disputes, the man surnamed Zhang from the breeding farm drove the sheep to the district committee.
During an interview with the journalist, Mr. Zhang, the breeder, revealed that his breeding farm suffered significant financial losses due to an unreasonable construction project, which even rendered the sheep homeless. Consequently, on the 19th, he drove the sheep to the committee’s entrance in desperation.
A citizen who witnessed the scene and was interviewed by Epoch Times mentioned, “Because of the sewer, the old man’s sheep farm got flooded. It has been resolved.”
Video footage showed hungry sheep waiting at the committee’s entrance until nightfall, attracting a crowd of curious onlookers. Spectators found the unusual event intriguing, with some even joking that “the leader should come out and address this,” and that “the person on duty doesn’t care about you.” Onlookers gathered around, discussing the scene animatedly.
Mr. Zhang raised 150 dairy goats. In September of this year, during a power grid construction project on the east side of his farm, the drainage channel was damaged, and then heavy rain caused flooding on the farm. Mr. Zhang only received a compensation of 2,100 yuan for “lost goat milk” from the construction unit.
This incident has sparked widespread discussion on social media platforms, with netizens expressing that such occurrences can only happen in China.
“The sheep knew what was going on but could only follow. They want to solve the problem, just unable to communicate verbally.”
“Where did the owner go? The sheep follow closely, understanding they cannot let the owner bear the blame.”
“Even without words, the sheep’s actions are indeed effective.”
“If the problem had been resolved earlier, the breeder wouldn’t have had to resort to this.”
“The sheep kneeling is heart-wrenching. This district office making animals kneel is outrageous.”
“I think it’s quite clever to handle the situation this way, no breaking the law or fighting, yet still being taken seriously.”
“Is this considered inciting a crowd?
“The black and white confrontation, the kneeling sheep, such a scene of irony, a showdown between justice and dark forces…”