GUANGZHOU: A group of chengguan officers, who have made headlines for violent assaults on street vendors, found themselves on the other end of a beating earlier this week.

As hundreds of people huddled around to watch, 20 chengguan in Dongguan city of Guangdong province were attacked on the street by a group of armed and organized men, Southern Metropolis Daily reported yesterday.

Eight of the city administrators were seriously injured and four remained in the hospital after Tuesday night's attack in the city's Guancheng district.