Vietnam deploys ballroom dancers, aerobics class to foil anti-China protesters

HANOI, Vietnam – Anti-China protesters hoping to lay wreaths at famous statues in the Vietnamese capital on Sunday were obstructed by an unusual sight of ballroom dancers and an energetic aerobics class held to a thumping sound system.

The demonstrators suspect the government deployed the dancers to stop them from getting close to the statues and make their speeches inaudible.

Last year the government organized old women to hold a street protest to prevent a visiting U.S. diplomat reaching a dissident’s house.

The protesters Sunday are marking the 35th anniversary of a border war between China and Vietnam.

They managed to lay wreaths at a nearby pagoda before dispersing as hundreds of plainclothes police looked on.

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