Issue 495, November 22
Translated by Tang Xiangyang
Original article: [Chinese]
The Shanghai fire has claimed 58 lives, turning Shanghai, the organizer of the recently concluded 29th World Expo, into a city of grief. Three days after the fire, the State Council investigation team stated they would "give a clear explanation of accountability to the relatives of those victims of the fire, those injured and the entire community."
We are still waiting to see who will be held accountable for the fire?
According to a report released by the State Council investigation team, the accident was caused by the ignition of flammable materials by four unlicensed welders. The report stated the fire "should not have happened and was completely avoidable." Currently, the four welders and the head of the construction company in charge of the refurbishing project have been detained. We believe these five people, whose actions were a direct cause of the fire, will be severely punished.
However, that's not enough. We hope, that the crimes of those developers who illegally subcontracted out the project, the policy-makers who offered the project to a construction company despite its record of twice failing to meet safety requirements and those officials who might have taken bribes from the construction company, will be exposed as well.
Will everyone responsible be held accountable for the fire? Aside from those four welders and the detained head of the construction company, who will stand up and bear the responsibility for the 58 deaths as well as the suffering of the whole city? Have we heard anybody say "sorry"? Has any official bowed to the public in atonement for the accident?
Is there even one city official who genuinely believes that they should provide the public with an explanation, face those grieving relatives, and the gaze of Shanghai along with the rest of the country?
The head of the investigation team of the State Council said, "Shanghai did a good job in rescuing those trapped by the fire; the rescue was timely, orderly and conducted effectively," and continued on to say, "all aspects of dealing with the aftermath are being carried out in an orderly, comprehensive fashion." We firmly believe that in the rescue stage everyone took actions, but that does not mean they lived up to the public's expectations of providing a clear explanation of accountability.
After hosting such a "successful, wonderful and unforgettable" World Expo and ensuring the safety of over 70 million visitors, why can't Shanghai ensure the safety of 58 ordinary citizens? Why couldn't it prevent an accident that "should not have happened and was completely avoidable" just one week after announcing the "complete success" of a city-wide fire safety day. The words of Shanghai officials stating the slogan, "Better City, Better Life" are still ringing in our ears.
Are the four welders, as well as the construction contractor, the only ones who should be held accountable for the fire? Aside from them, who else is responsible? Who should be held responsible for the worst fire disaster in Shanghai this century? Who is responsible for the safety of the city and for the lives of ordinary people? Why haven't any officials taken the blame for the fire and resigned? The Provisional Regulations on the Resignation of Leading Cadres of the Party clearly states that officials who are responsible for major accidents should resign.
Will anyone provide us with a clear account of who is responsible? Is the reason we light fireworks after ceremonies to illuminate every dark corner in the city that needs brightening or to illuminate the vanity of officials? What we want to know is: are those assignments claimed by officials as "top priorities" really more important than people's welfare, rights and dignity? While we met all the promises we made to the world, how many commitments to ordinary people have been ignored and deserted?
Can we make sure those who are to blame are held accountable? Of course we can. We can attribute the whole accident to those "should not have happened and completely avoidable" factors and punish those perpetrators so that we can feel that justice has been served. It has been done in the past and thus we should be able to accomplish this now. However we should admit that, if we don't hold them responsible, officials will always be responsible to their leaders instead of the public. They will be responsible to their positions and political performance, never to the sorrows of ordinary people.
Government officials, although labeled public servants, will never bow to the public. As long as they do not feel that they are empowered by the people and have to speak for people, they will never take the responsibility to seriously respond to people's demands. If this fire can't awaken those numb and cowardly officials nor force them to assume their responsibilities, who can we expect to be held accountable? Both the dead and the living are waiting for answers.
This article was edited by Rose Scobie and Paul Pennay
