Update | Hundreds protest in Shanghai over ban on selling converted flats
Rare demonstration came after city authorities barred owners from selling apartments converted from office or commercial space
Hundreds of demonstrators have marched through a glitzy Shanghai shopping district protesting against changes to housing regulations, in a rare show of public dissent in the financial hub.
Footage of the protests shared on social media late on Saturday showed hundreds of demonstrators holding placards and shouting slogans while marching along Nanjing Roadin the city centre.
One video showed police setting up blockades and dragging a demonstrator away.
Media were ordered not to report on the demonstration, two local journalists said. Mentions of the protests on social media were scrubbed by censors.
Two witnesses said about 10 of the protesters who were hoisting banners and appeared to be leading the demonstrations were taken away by the police.
Protesters were angry about measures announced on May 17 to “clean-up and rectify” office projects that had been converted into flats. It is a grey area property developers had exploited by acquiring land cheaply outside of residential zones.