Villagers held for throwing ink-filled eggs at national flag

Two Chongqing villagers have been arrested for desecrating the Communist Party flag and the national flag with ink-filled eggs.

Police squads were sent to track down the suspects on the orders of the city's top party official, Bo Xilai , after five flags at a Chongqing cemetery for Communist martyrs were splattered with ink on November 23, the Chongqing Times reported.

Several public security agencies joined forces to set up a 105-police officer team three days after the case was opened, with authorities saying the incident had damaged the image of the party and the nation, and had had a big impact on society.

The police officers investigated at least 873 suspects within a few days and arrested Chongqing resident Zhang Jingzhi on December 1. A day later, a villager from Xiangle village, Wen Tingyu , was also taken into custody. The report gave no further details about the two suspects. No representative of the Chongqing police could be reached for comment yesterday.

If convicted, the men could face up to three years in prison.

The website of the Shapingba District People's Court said residents of Xiangle and local land departments had been in dispute over land issues.