Police in central China said Thursday they had detained about 10 parents who protested over an industrial pollution incident that left more than 1,300 children with lead poisoning.
The government in Wugang city in Hunan province has also accused members of the banned Falungong spiritual group of fomenting unrest over the incident, one of a series of recent pollution-related health scares in the country.
"About 10 parents of the children blocked roads and rushed into government and police offices several days ago," a policeman at the Wenping station in Wugang told AFP by telephone.
"They either surrendered to police or were taken in by police," he said, refusing to identify himself.
A total of 1,354 children, or about 70 percent of those under the age of 14 that lived in four villages near a Wugang manganese smelting plant, were found last month to have unsafe levels of lead in their blood.
Lead poisoning is especially hazardous to children — it can harm the nervous system and lead to stunted mental development.
The factory has since been shut down, plant executives have been detained and two officials from the local environmental protection bureau are under investigation for dereliction of duty.
"A handful of diehard Falungong practitioners from overseas have tried to influence the public with lies and rumours," the Wugang government said in a notice issued last week.
"You must maintain a high level of political alert and report any Falungong diehards seeking to foment the people with propaganda."
The notice urged locals to have faith in the government's efforts to resolve the issue.
China has viewed Falungong as a serious threat since more than 10,000 adherents surrounded Communist Party headquarters in central Beijing in 1999 in a demonstration against a crackdown on the group.
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