China has jailed six people over riots that erupted last month in the nation's southern industrial heartland, state media said Tuesday.

The unrest in southern Guangdong province broke out on June 11 after rumours spread that police had beaten a street hawker to death and manhandled his pregnant wife.

Television images at the time showed hundreds of police officers and armoured vehicles deployed on the streets, with people hurling bricks at local officials, vandalising ATMs and police posts.

A court in Guangdong handed down prison terms ranging from nine months to three years and six months, the official Guangzhou Daily said.

The violence was just one incident among a recent bout of unrest. Earlier in June, hundreds of people battled police and destroyed cars in Guangdong after a factory worker was wounded in a knife attack over a wage row.

And in late May, thousands of ethnic Mongols protested in northern China for several days after the killing of a herder laid bare simmering anger in the region.

According to the report, those sentenced on Monday had all taken part in the riots. Some had burnt or damaged police cars and thrown rocks at vehicles and people. One of them bit a policeman in the stomach when he was detained.

Neither the court nor the local government were available for comment.

Last month, police said they had detained a person suspected of spreading rumours on the Internet that triggered the clashes.

They said the suspect -- surnamed Chen -- had confessed to publishing false information online. But it was unclear whether Chen had been sentenced yet.

earlier related report
Calls mount for HK probe of police 'abuses' at rally
Hong Kong (AFP) July 12, 2011 - Human rights groups Tuesday urged Hong Kong to probe alleged police abuses at a massive anti-government rally this month, and claimed the police had used "disproportionate force" against the media.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets on July 1 to vent their frustration at government policies and soaring property prices in Hong Kong's biggest rally in seven years.

The rally was largely peaceful but rights groups have accused police of violating the right to assembly after they arrested 231 people and used pepper spray to disperse a crowd after the march.

New York-based rights group Human Rights Watch, which said some journalists had been hit with pepper spray in their face and eyes, slammed the police for detaining a human rights observer who was videotaping the demonstration.

"If (Chief Executive) Donald Tsang and the Hong Kong government turn a blind eye to alleged police abuses, they risk Hong Kong's reputation as a bastion for civil liberties," said Sophie Richardson, HRW's Asia advocacy director.

"At a time when freedom of speech and assembly and the rights of a free press are under serious attack by Chinese security forces just over the border, it's essential for the Hong Kong government to demonstrate a strong commitment to the defence of those same rights and freedoms in Hong Kong," she added.

The former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997 but retains a semi-autonomous status under the "one country, two systems" model, with civil liberties including freedom of speech not enjoyed in mainland China.

Peaceful protests are common in the bustling city of seven million.

But television news footage of the July 1 rally showed police using pepper spray to disperse demonstrators following a several hour standoff, with some forcibly removed, handcuffed and carried into police trucks.

The city's security bureau said it "always respects peoples freedom and rights of peaceful procession, assembly and expression", but added that police had to maintain order when a small group of activists became violent.

"The police exercised a high level of restraint and professionalism to stop the violent acts of those protesters and restore the public order," it said.

Rights groups have expressed concern over the city's lower tolerance towards dissent in recent years, including the denial of entry to high-profile critics of China such as 1989 Tiananmen Square student protest leader Wang Dan.

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