Zhang Anfang, a resident in Bangbu City, Anhui Province, has been called “the most awesome nail house owner” for resisting the bulldozers and landing in the slammer twice in nine years because of his not-so-legal ways of protecting his homes.

On August 1, 2013, a digger, police and development company arrived at his doorstep to demolish his house. Zhang Anfang pulled out all the stops to protect his home, using pepper spray, a flame thrower, liquefied petroleum gas, a fierce dog and a gun to keep the developers at bay. The action landed him, his wife and his sister-in-law in jail. For Zhang, this was his first time back in jail since October 2011, when he sat in the slammer for a similar retaliation against developers.

Zhang’s sojourn into the world of “demolition resistance” began in 2005 when developers began to redevelop Penghu District. Not agreeing to the demolition, Zhang installed cameras and made a home-made flame thrower. He also raised 12 dogs, which included a Tibetan Mastiff. He resisted for five years and his father even passed away during that time. But he held out despite losing many supporters including his own brother and neighbors.

Then in 2011, Zhang’s family home was successfully demolished and developers compensated the family with four brand new houses and two second-hand houses. Zhang’s mother and four brothers moved into the new homes and after Zhang got out of jail in 2012 (for protesting against the original home’s destruction) moved in with his mother-in-law. However, that house was up for demolition too and that’s how Zhang ended up in jail again this summer.

Source: ifeng.com

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Keywords: Zhang Anfang nail house owner