More than 40 villagers relocated to make way for the Xiaowan Dam were arrested during confrontations with police in Yunnan's Mengsa township on Saturday, according to witnesses.
The villagers beat up several township officials during a town-hall meeting about relocation compensation and then protested outside a government building to demand direct dialogue with municipal leaders.
Around 300 police soon arrived and arrested more than 40 villagers who refused to disperse after a warning, Mengsa resident Wang Wenyuan said.
'No serious clashes happened during the arrest, because most of us were directing our anger at the government officials, not the police,' Mr Wang said.
He said some of those arrested had been released by yesterday, but he did not know how many remained in custody.
The township government called representatives of relocated families to a meeting to hear officials explain why some relocation payouts had not yet reached the intended recipients.
According to Mr Wang, some younger people started arguing with officials and a fight broke out. Some officials were beaten by village representatives, but none seriously, he said.