U.S. journalist released in China

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HONG KONG : November 19, 2006:A U.S. photojournalist detained while covering a southern Chinese village protest, where riot police freed officials held hostage by residents protesting the arrest of an anti-corruption activist, says he has been released.

The freelance journalist, Danfung Dennis, on Sunday morning called his sister, who lives in Beijing, from the village, saying he thought that police were about to detain him and that she should notify the U.S. Embassy, his father, John Dennis, told The Associated Press.

Danfung, 25, has done freelance work for The New York Times but it was not clear who sent him to cover the protest.

On Saturday, a large group of riot police moved into Dongzhou and rescued eight officials held hostage by residents demanding the release of an activist, Chen Qian, arrested last week for protesting corruption.

The official Xinhua News Agency said late Saturday there were no injuries or conflicts during the police operation. Xinhua reported that the officials were taken hostage because villagers were unhappy about the arrest of Chen, who the report said had assaulted one of the officials "over trifles."

Xinhua didn't mention the reported arrest of the journalist. Hong Kong's Ming Pao Daily newspaper reported Sunday that a foreign journalist was taken away and three villagers were also arrested.

Last year, police shot dead three protesters and wounded eight others when they clashed in protests over land disputes in Dongzhou.

Thousands of villagers protested inadequate compensation for land seized by the local government to build the power plant. Authorities say police opened fire after they were attacked by demonstrators armed with knives, spears and explosives.

Reporters working in China are frequently detained or harassed by police for covering sensitive news, including village protests and corruption scandals.