Shenzhen police prevent disruption to top hi-tech fair
Shenzhen taxi drivers were forced to abandon a long-planned protest yesterday after police warned they would punish 'troublemakers' who dared sabotage the opening of a major industrial exhibition.
Hundreds of drivers had planned to stage a slow-drive protest near the Shenzhen Exhibition Centre when the seventh China Hi-Tech Fair opened.
The drivers said they wanted to protest over the high rents they have to pay the city's taxi operators.
But the authorities put enough pressure on the drivers for them to abandon their plan - by using technology originally designed to help the cabbies. Most of the taxis in Shenzhen have installed the Global Positioning System to help navigation. The taxi companies on Tuesday said they would provide the GPS information to the police.
'They say if they find more than 10 taxis staying together, or any taxi which stops in a spot for too long, they will immediately send officers to investigate. The taxi drivers will face severe punishment, including confiscation of the cars and cancellation of their licences,' said one taxi driver.
