From AFP, via Khaleej Times:
A blind social activist who blew the whistle on an east China county, which forced villagers to undergo sterilisations and detained those who refused, has been badly beaten, sources said on Wednesday.
Chen Guangcheng, 34, has been under house arrest since mid-August for speaking out against violations of family planning rules by Shandong’s Yinan county and filing a class-action suit on behalf of villagers.
On Tuesday Chen was beaten and punched by several thugs allegedly hired by the county government when he tried to leave his home in Dongshigu village, one friend, Xu Zhiyong, told AFP.
“Several of the people guarding him beat him when his family members tried to help him out of his house,” Xu said. “He suffered broken teeth and was bleeding.”
