Several scholars and activists have launched their own investigations into the death of a village chief that sparked national outrage.
At least three independent teams - led by social sciences Professor Yu Jianrong , columnist Wang Xiaoshan and a well-known internet activist - are due to arrive in the village in Yueqing , Zhejiang , today and tomorrow.
On Saturday Qian Yunhui, the 53-year-old former chief of Zhaiqiao village, was hit and killed just a few hundred metres from his home by a truck driven by a man without a driving licence.
At a press conference on Sunday, Yueqing police attributed Qian's death to a 'simple traffic accident'.
Wenzhou police, who have jurisdiction over Yueqing, said yesterday they could not find any evidence that Qian was murdered, but many internet users said Qian was murdered by officials. Scholars, rights activists and internet users vowed to find out the truth.
It is the latest civil campaign to challenge an official cover-up; the most notorious in recent years was a campaign to help waitress Deng Yujiao, who killed an official who tried to rape her at a Hubei hotel last year.
Yu, from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said he would mainly investigate the illegal land requisitions Qian had fought during the past five years. Commentator Chen Min, also known by the pen name Xiao Shu, will probe the rest of the case with Professor Zhao Xiao, from Beijing University of Science and Technology, and other internet users.