Recently, in Kunming, Yunnan Province, a massive conflict lasting for six hours erupted between the night market vendors at Haile World Night Market and the police. Utensils, stools, and chairs were sent flying in the air. The trigger of this clash stemmed from the local government’s closure of the night market under the guise of “rectification,” taking the opportunity to solicit merchants and collect stall fees.
On September 28th, a blogger who closely follows collective rights protection events in China, known as “Yesterday” (@YesterdayBigcat), posted on the X social platform, stating that a heated conflict lasting about six hours broke out between the vendors at Haile World Night Market on Yongzhong Road in Guandu District of Kunming, along with the urban management officers and subsequently arrived police, starting from late Saturday night to early Sunday morning on September 27th-28th.
Witnesses described scenes of chaos at the site, with “utensils, stools, and chairs flying everywhere.” Substantial police reinforcements arrived, and during the conflict, many vendors were injured and hospitalized; a large number of vendors were taken away by the police, with their food carts dragged away by urban management officers.
The spark of the conflict originated from the local government department’s closure of the night market a half month ago under the pretense of “rectification,” and subsequently engaging in soliciting merchants and collecting stall fees.
Vendors revealed that the current business at Haile World Night Market was the result of their long-term persistence, earning a meager income of a few tens of RMB each day. However, just as the night market business was starting to pick up, the urban management department forcibly closed it under the guise of rectification and immediately began charging stall fees. Vendors found that when registering as required by the authorities, the registered stalls exceeded 400, with many not being the original vendors, leading to their refusal to pay fees.
Vendors expressed that they had already paid various fees totaling tens of thousands of RMB in the past, but the government department frequently changed its stance, collecting money and then sending urban management officers to drive them away, providing no real protection to the vendors.
For many vendors, setting up stalls was their sole economic source for their families, and the prolonged closure had left them overwhelmed. Upon learning that the rectification had ended the day before on September 27th, vendors returned to their original stalls to resume business.
However, around 9 p.m. the same evening, a large number of urban management personnel gathered at the night market, attempting to evict the vendors, leading to a confrontation between the two sides.
Video footage shows that on the evening of the 27th, near Guangdong Heyuan Xike Communication Technology Equipment Co., Ltd., a vendor stood on top of a food cart with a frying spoon, preventing the urban management from towing the cart away.
During the conflict, some vendors were beaten by the urban management officers, and enraged vendors threw utensils, stools, chairs, and more at the urban management personnel and subsequently arrived police. The scene descended into chaos, with hundreds of onlookers, with one witness describing it as “utensils, stools, and chairs flying everywhere.”
Around 3 a.m. on the 28th, the chaos and standoff gradually subsided.
Currently, there has been no official report or coverage from the Chinese Communist Party’s official media on this incident.
Netizens commented under the blogger “Yesterday’s” post, stating, “Whatever happens in China now, public opinion has little impact on the actions of the government. After the conflict occurs, they still do what they have to do. The handling methods are all the same: arrest a few people, suspend several social media accounts.”
“The clanging of pots and pans in the night market was supposed to be the lively sound of human activity, but overnight, it has become weapons against urban management; this is the true battle for survival.” “The government is running out of money, hence the looting!”