Government officials silent over compensation for victims of the Shanghai stampede disaster
Officials ignore shouted questions about the issue during a briefing into the causes of the New Year’s Eve crush on the city's riverfront that killed 36 people
Relatives of the 36 people who died in the New Year’s Eve stampede in Shanghai have still yet to hear if they will receive compensation after the disaster.
The issue was not raised during a press conference into the causes of the fatal crush on the city’s riverfront and officials did not reply when journalists pressed them on the matter.
“You didn’t answer questions about compensation,” several reporters shouted at the end of the press briefing on Wednesday. Officials sitting on the platform walked away without responding.
Wang Yu, the deputy director of Shanghai’s supervision bureau, defended at another meeting the decision to punish only district level officials for negligence.
The inquiry into the disaster has recommended that four officials in the Huangpu district be sacked.
Wang said cadres in Huangpu bore the main blame for the poor policing and crowd control on the Bund on New Year’s Eve when thousands packed onto the riverfront to watch a lights show.
“The joint investigation team found that it was the Huangpu district government that was mainly responsible for the incident, while municipal government departments were found in dereliction of their duties to guide and supervise,” said Wang.
Han Zheng, Shanghai’s Communist Party chief, said the city had learned a lesson in blood from the disaster and he was full of sorrow.
Liu Ping, the deputy director of the municipal government’s law department, also denied rumours that the city authorities had officially categorised the disaster as an “incident” rather than an “accident” to try to reduce any potential criminal charges for negligence.
“That scenario does not exist,” said Liu.
The authorities have carried out safety assessments on 29 events due to take place at future festivals in Shanghai, including the Lunar New Year next month, said Vice Mayor Zhou Bo.
Twenty-four have been given the go-ahead and five cancelled.
Three people are still in hospital after the New Year’s Eve disaster, said Xu Wei, a spokesman for the city government.
One is in a critical condition.
