Guangdong Lufeng Bans Firecrackers During Folk Deity Parade, Thousands Protest

The sound of firecrackers drives away the old year's evil spirits. (Screenshot from the internet)

[People News] On the evening of March 7, large-scale crowds gathered in Lufeng City, Guangdong, during the Lunar New Year deity parade activities. Multiple online videos show large numbers of residents setting off firecrackers in the area around Hongxing Comprehensive Market on Renmin Road in the city, protesting the local firecracker ban, and shoving with police officers who came to maintain order.

According to Radio Free Asia, in Lufeng, the Lunar New Year deity parade is the grandest, liveliest, and most unifying traditional folk event of the year. When the deities parade through, villagers light mountains of firecrackers and fireworks to welcome them, and the entire street is engulfed in gunpowder smoke and deafening explosions, with dense bursts of firecrackers and thick smoke everywhere. This is also the local people’s way of praying for “prosperity and flourishing.”

However, this year, disregarding villagers’ opposition, the Lufeng authorities forcibly introduced a “firecracker ban order,” prohibiting people from setting off firecrackers during the Lunar New Year deity parade, ultimately triggering large-scale protests. Some netizens said that the number of protesters reached into the thousands, and some said it exceeded ten thousand. But Radio Free Asia was unable to verify this.

Police ban on firecrackers and detentions provoked dissatisfaction

Mr. Chen, a resident living near Hongxing Comprehensive Market in Lufeng, told Radio Free Asia on March 8 that the day before, many residents had still prepared firecrackers according to the custom of previous years, but were obstructed by police. He said: “Later, many people ignored the police and took out the firecrackers they had bought in advance and set them off. This is their local custom. Once the deity statue comes out, they begin setting off firecrackers. I heard that the police arrested several people, but they were released today.”

Mr. Chen said the local Lunar New Year deity parade is held every year, and setting off firecrackers is an important part of welcoming the gods. “Wherever the deity statue parades to, villagers will set off firecrackers to welcome it. This is a custom passed down from the older generation. The government suddenly said this year that firecrackers could not be set off, and many people found it unbelievable.”

A video posted by the X account “Yesterday” (YesterdayBigcat) shows large crowds gathered on multiple streets in downtown Lufeng, Guangdong. They can be heard shouting, but the exact words are unclear. The streets are covered with red debris from spent firecrackers, and the air is filled with smoke. The video also shows police cars entering the scene, surrounded by large numbers of onlookers.

Another clip shows multiple uniformed police officers restraining a man by the roadside, with a police vehicle marked “Public Security” parked nearby. The intersections on both sides are filled with onlookers, many holding up their phones to film the scene.

In the on-site videos, the streets are packed with people. Some stand in the middle of the road, some ride motorcycles weaving through, and some raise their arms and shout to the crowd behind them, while more and more people continue gathering forward. Some shops on both sides of the street remain lit, and some vehicles are forced to slow down or detour.

Mr. Ye, a self-employed shopkeeper in Lufeng, told reporters: “In the last two days, some young people had already been setting off firecrackers. When the police saw them, they arrested them. I heard that about a dozen people were taken, which caused a lot of dissatisfaction, and that’s why the people erupted on a large scale. When the police cars came in, the atmosphere became tense.”

Mr. Ye said the local government had previously issued a notice requiring restrictions on fireworks and firecrackers during the New Year. “After the notice came out, many people were discussing it. Some felt that a deity parade without firecrackers would no longer feel like a deity parade.”

Scholar: deity parades are an important local folk custom

Guangdong folklorist Liao Yueming told Radio Free Asia that Lufeng, as well as Shanwei and the Chaoshan area, have long preserved the tradition of deity parades. Such activities are often organized by villages or clans, with very high participation by residents, though he does not know why the authorities banned it. He said: “For local communities, deity parades are not only a folk religious ritual, but also a community activity. Many people regard it as the most important festival of the year. If administrative orders directly restrict key rituals, it is easy to provoke dissatisfaction among residents.”

Deity parades are a folk religious and traditional festival activity widely practiced in the eastern coastal areas of Guangdong, mainly distributed in the Chaoshan region, Shanwei, Lufeng, Jieyang, and Chaozhou. These activities are usually held during the New Year, the Lantern Festival, or major temple fairs, and are among the most important folk rituals in the area. Deity parades are usually organized by local temples, clans, or village communities. On the day of the event, people carry out the deity statues worshipped in the temples, and believers carry them through the streets and alleys, receiving offerings from residents along the way.

It is understood that the basis for the Lufeng authorities’ law enforcement this time is believed to be related to the local fireworks and firecrackers ban notice. The notice designates the urban area as a no-burn zone and stipulates that even during traditional folk activities such as “deity parades,” firecrackers may not be set off.

At the same time, Guangdong Province revised the “Guangdong Province Regulations on Registration Numbers and Archival Numbers for Folk Belief Activity Sites” in 2024, with implementation scheduled for June 16, 2025, standardizing the registration of folk belief sites and the approval of related activities.

As of now, the local government has not yet announced detailed information about this street gathering incident, nor has it explained whether anyone was taken away or punished. Reporters called the office of the Lufeng City Public Security Bureau, but no one answered the phone throughout.
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