Chinese authorities ordered a chemical factory to close on Sunday after more than 12,000 demonstrators confronted riot police, demanding the plant’s relocation amid health fears.

　　中國官方周日下令一家化工廠停產，此前逾12000名示威者與防暴警察對峙，示威者以健康擔憂為由，要求該廠搬遷。

　　Scuffles broke out between police and protesters, mostly young people, in the public square outside the municipal government offices in Dalian, Liaoning province.

　　在遼寧省大連市政府外的人民廣場上，以年輕人為主的抗議者與警察發生了肢體沖突。

　　Public anger in the north-east Chinese city erupted after the Fujia Chemical Plant, which produces the toxic chemical paraxylene, or PX, came close to being inundated with sea water during a storm last week.

　　上周熱帶風暴來襲期間，生產有毒化學品對二甲苯(paraxylene，簡稱 PX)的“福佳大化”工廠險些被海水倒灌，這座東北城市市民的憤怒由此爆發。

　　Hours after the protest began, the Dalian government said it had ordered the chemical plant to close immediately. It said the factory would be relocated.

　　抗議開始幾小時后，大連市政府表示，已下令這家化工廠立即停產。市政府稱，該廠將被搬遷。

　　The protest was the latest against environmental disasters and degradation caused by China’s rapid industrialisation and economic development. China’s government faces a dilemma because it refuses to allow political reforms, while the population becomes increasingly wealthy, connected via the internet, critical of poor governance and distrustful of its leaders.

　　中國的快速工業化和經濟發展，導致了環境災難和環境退化，大連這次事件是針對此類問題的最新一起抗議。中國政府面臨一個兩難困境，因為一方面它拒絕允許政治改革，而另一方面中國人變得越來越富裕，而且通過互聯網聯系在一起，對糟糕的治理提出批評，還不信任國家領導人。

　　On Sunday, many of the demonstrators sang the national anthem and carried banners emphasising their patriotism in an apparent attempt to avoid the harsh response often meted out to dissidents.

　　周日，許多示威者高唱中國國歌，高舉著愛國標語，這顯然是為了避免遭遇官方經常對異見人士采取的嚴厲手段。

　　Dalian’s senior officials, Tang Jun, the Communist party secretary, and Li Wancai, the mayor, “tried to appease the crowd by promising to move the plant out of the city”, reported the state-run Xinhua news agency.

　　據官方的新華社報道，大連市委書記唐軍和市長李萬才承諾將該廠搬離大連，以求安撫人群。

　　But some protesters said they would refuse to leave the square until a timetable was announced.

　　但一些抗議者表示，在宣布搬遷時間表之前，他們將拒絕離開廣場。

　　Last Monday, the government evacuated homes near the huge Fujia plant – which is built on reclaimed land – after waves from a tropical storm breached a dyke protecting the plant.

　　“福佳大化”工廠建在填海造地得來的土地上。上周一，政府疏散了這座巨大工廠附近的居民，當時，保護該廠的防波堤在一場熱帶風暴中被沖毀。

　　The large factory is about 20km from the centre of the city of 6m people.

　　這座大型工廠距離大連這座600萬人口城市的市中心大約20公里。

　　PX is widely used in the production of paints, plastics and polyester. Chronic exposure can result in genetic defects and death.

　　對二甲苯廣泛用于油漆、塑料和聚酯的生產。慢性接觸可能導致遺傳缺陷和死亡。

　　Dalian residents complain they were kept in the dark about the Fujia plant’s construction, which began in 2005. Anger was further fuelled last week when it was reported that although the factory started full production in June 2009, it did not receive the necessary environmental approvals until April last year.

　　大連市民抱怨稱，他們對2005年動工的這座工廠的建設不知情。上周令市民更加氣憤的是，有報道稱，雖然該廠在2009年6月就全面投產，但直到去年4月，才獲得了必要的環保批準。

　　Public consultation over such projects is rare in China and officials often push through big industrial developments without heeding opposition or environmental laws.

　　中國很少就此類項目咨詢公眾意見，官員們往往強行推動大型工業項目上馬，而置反對意見或環保法規于不顧。

　　In 2008, protests in the southern Chinese city of Xiamen forced authorities to scrap plans to build a similar PX plant.

　　2008年，中國南方城市廈門曾爆發抗議，迫使官方放棄建設一家類似PX工廠的計劃。

　　But environmental activists say if Dalian officials follow through on their promises it will be the first time a large, operational petrochemical plant was relocated in China because of public concerns.

　　但環保活動人士表示，如果大連官員兌現自己的承諾，那將是中國一家已經投產的大型石化廠首次由于公眾關切而被搬遷。

　　As with many recent protests in China, Sunday’s demonstration was apparently organised through Chinese micro-blogging and instant messaging websites.

　　與中國近期許多抗議活動一樣，周日的示威顯然是通過中國的微博和即時信息網站組織起來的。