Relocation projects were suspended and two government officials were fired after up to one thousand people protested for four days last week against local authorities' handling of land compensation cases in east China's Jiangsu Province.

The Party and government heads of Tong'an Town in Suzhou City were dismissed after up to one thousand protesters gathered at the government headquarters of the town from July 15 to 18, demanding higher compensation for their land which had been acquired by the government to build industrial parks, according to a statement emailed to Xinhua by the government of Huqiu District, which administers Tong'an Town.

Some villagers clashed with government staff and smashed desks, chairs and windows in the building, according to the statement.

Protesters also assembled on a highway and blocked traffic, but were later dispersed by police.

Protesters sought additional compensation as they thought the payments they received before 2008 were much less than the amount they currently receive, about which some of them claimed they suspected some officials had withheld part of the compensation money owed them.

However, the statement did not explain the difference in compensation amounts or whether the accusation of officials siphoning off money was true.

According to the statement, two officials were removed from their posts for "mishandling public appeals and dereliction of duty when following land compensation standards".

The district's government vowed in the statement to raise the living standards of villagers who had been relocated since 2003 and lost their farmland when the project began.

It also promised to provide villagers with at least 1,000 jobs each year.