Bureau chief dismissed after man beaten to death

THE government of Tianmen City, Hubei Province, deposed the head of the city's urban management bureau yesterday after more than 50 of the bureau's officers beat a man to death who was filming their clash with villagers on Monday, the Beijing News reported today.

Qi Zhengjun, former under-secretary general of the Tianmen government and head of the city's Urban Management Bureau, is now under investigation and faces further punishment depending on the result of the probe, the report quoted Bie Bixiong, Party Chief of Tianmen, as saying.

The city's government has started disciplinary inspections among its law enforcement officers, the report said.

Each of the management officials must get a certificate after a training program, Bie stipulated in a conference yesterday that was joined by the heads of the city's law enforcement departments.

Wei Wenhua, 41, general manager of a Tianmen construction firm, was beaten to death on Monday afternoon when he was using his cell phone to record a clash between villagers and officials from the Urban Management Bureau.

Four people have been arrested and more than 100 were questioned by police after the incident, according to a previous Xinhua news agency report.

An autopsy has been carried out on Wei's body. It will be further examined by experts with the Hubei Provincial Department of Public Security, Xinhua report said, without mentioning when the result of the autopsy will be made public.

Wei was posthumously honored for "his bravery" by the government according to a request by Wei's relatives.

Wei was survived by his wife and a 14-year-old daughter.

"My dear father, why haven't you come back to me¡KI want to be with you forever." Wei Zheng, Wei's daughter, wrote in a poem to her father after she learned of his death. She described him as kind and honest.

Bie yesterday visited Wei's home and offered condolences to the family. He promised Wei's relatives that the criminals would be caught and brought to justice. He also said the government will fund Wei Zheng's studies and find a job for Wei's wife, who had been laid off shortly before Wei's death.