The strange massacre of dogs in southern China’s Yunnan Province is an event taking on a journalistic life of its own.
State media reported earlier this week that authorities in Mouding County in Yunnan clubbed to death, or otherwise killed, some 50,000 dogs in recent days to contain a rabies outbreak that had left three people dead.
In some cases, officials snatched dogs from their owners and clubbed them to death on the spot. Check out the photos and story here.
First off, one wonders, how could one county have so many dogs?
Secondly, many Chinese believe the government acted in a cold-hearted manner, letting the rabies outbreak grow out of hand, then punishing dog owners with a wanton slaughter.
While television newscasts portray the dog cull as a responsible government reaction to thwart an epidemic, radio call-in shows have portrayed the flip side, drawing fervent opinions from callers who say the dog slaughter was an over-reaction.
Would authorities do the same if rabies erupted in Shanghai or Beijing?
Chinese in the big cities are passionate about their dogs, paying huge municipal fees to keep them. Perhaps the intense interest in this story is because it has the potential to spark broader outrage over government action.
Under China’s brittle political system, such small protests can easily flare into something larger.
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