Man sets himself on fire to protest Chinese Laws

A Chinese man has protested the demolition of his home in the capital Beijing by setting himself on fire.

The man who is currently in hospital getting treatment for his burns and named as Xi Xinzhu set himself on fire when the demolition crew arrived at his house.

Experts say the incident will put even more pressure on China to reform rules on forced eviction in the country which led to a women dyeing last month by setting herself on fire.

Xi Xinzhu suffered burns to 10% of his body, officials told the Chinese Communist Party-controlled People’s Daily newspaper.

Xi’s brother, Xi Xinqiang, told Reuters news agency “We tried everything to raise legal questions about this demolition through normal channels, but nobody would do anything, although there are plainly problems”.

Chinese law currently gives the right to local governments to claim land as their own so that they can use it for urban development projects.

Residents often complain that the amount of compensation offered is far below the real value of their homes.