Tension remains high in the Chinese province of Guangxi, more than a week after government officials forced dozens of women to have abortions to enforce the one-child policy, witnesses say.

Family-planning officials in the southern province raided several towns and villages to enforce the policy, which mandates one child per family. 

Riots broke out after zealous officials dressed in army fatigues and carrying sledgehammers barged into the homes of pregnant women who already had a child, the CBC's Anthony Germain reported.

The women were forced to have abortions.

Residents also said officials confiscated livestock, stole money and vandalized some homes.

A man named Xin said the riots broke out in several of the towns and villages that were raided. As many as 3,000 people fought with police in one incident.

Police arrested dozens of people.

Xin condemned the officials, saying their approach should be educational rather than punitive.

Riots often break out after one-child policy raids.

Introduced in 1979, the policy is intended to slow China's population growth. In 2002, the government relaxed some of the one-child rules, but there are still tensions.

The riot in Guangxi partly broke out because officials began to enforce rules that had previously been ignored.

With files from the Associated Press