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Log inChina reneges on pledge to say why schools fell in quake
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China reneges on pledge to say why schools fell in quake
by Outspoken on Sat Sep 13, 2008 7:47 pm
China reneges on pledge to say why schools fell in quake
By Tim Johnson
McClatchy Newspapers
LUOSHUI, China — In quake-wracked Sichuan province, temporary settlements of row houses throb with activity. Excited noise flows from schoolrooms. Rebuilding efforts are at full throttle as the government puts all its heft into fulfilling pledges to recover quickly from the May 12 disaster.
But there's one promise authorities have failed to keep: They've refused to point the finger at anyone responsible for the collapse of hundreds of schools that fell on and crushed 10,000 or more children under heavy rubble.
Pledges punish those responsible for shoddy school construction have gone unfulfilled. Instead, officials have urged grieving parents to move on with their lives and quit pressing for explanations.
"Government officials explained to us that if they sent all those people who are responsible to the firing squad, it still wouldn't bring back our children," said Zhang Xiaoping , a 34-year-old mother who lost her only daughter in a collapsed school here.
Many parents believe initial probes turned up too many culprits who profited from slipshod construction — ranging from suppliers of materials, to architects and on to local education bureaus and government offices. The state may have realized it couldn't move against all those who cut corners or profited from cheap construction.
"Too many people are involved," said Tang Shiliang, whose granddaughter died in the collapse of the Luoshui No. 2 elementary school, now just a field of rubble at his feet.
"It's the cement, brick and steel companies. All of them were involved in the corruption," he said.
The death toll from the earthquake stands at nearly 70,000. Officials decline to say how many schoolchildren perished, but they readily offer a litany of facts about reconstruction efforts, down to the 210 billion bricks that will be needed and the 3,400 miles of railway that must be rebuilt. Officials only acknowledged for the first time earlier this month that poor construction may have played a role in the collapse of schools.
Ma Zongjin, a government scientist who led a commission of experts assessing the damage from the quake, said at a Sept. 4 news conference that some schools contained insufficient columns for the floor area, a structural woe exacerbated by the use of poor-quality concrete or steel.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20080912/wl_mcclatchy/3043709;_ylt=AloIQnGNkFWEXeo2CsEDK0us0NUE
By Tim Johnson
McClatchy Newspapers
LUOSHUI, China — In quake-wracked Sichuan province, temporary settlements of row houses throb with activity. Excited noise flows from schoolrooms. Rebuilding efforts are at full throttle as the government puts all its heft into fulfilling pledges to recover quickly from the May 12 disaster.
But there's one promise authorities have failed to keep: They've refused to point the finger at anyone responsible for the collapse of hundreds of schools that fell on and crushed 10,000 or more children under heavy rubble.
Pledges punish those responsible for shoddy school construction have gone unfulfilled. Instead, officials have urged grieving parents to move on with their lives and quit pressing for explanations.
"Government officials explained to us that if they sent all those people who are responsible to the firing squad, it still wouldn't bring back our children," said Zhang Xiaoping , a 34-year-old mother who lost her only daughter in a collapsed school here.
Many parents believe initial probes turned up too many culprits who profited from slipshod construction — ranging from suppliers of materials, to architects and on to local education bureaus and government offices. The state may have realized it couldn't move against all those who cut corners or profited from cheap construction.
"Too many people are involved," said Tang Shiliang, whose granddaughter died in the collapse of the Luoshui No. 2 elementary school, now just a field of rubble at his feet.
"It's the cement, brick and steel companies. All of them were involved in the corruption," he said.
The death toll from the earthquake stands at nearly 70,000. Officials decline to say how many schoolchildren perished, but they readily offer a litany of facts about reconstruction efforts, down to the 210 billion bricks that will be needed and the 3,400 miles of railway that must be rebuilt. Officials only acknowledged for the first time earlier this month that poor construction may have played a role in the collapse of schools.
Ma Zongjin, a government scientist who led a commission of experts assessing the damage from the quake, said at a Sept. 4 news conference that some schools contained insufficient columns for the floor area, a structural woe exacerbated by the use of poor-quality concrete or steel.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20080912/wl_mcclatchy/3043709;_ylt=AloIQnGNkFWEXeo2CsEDK0us0NUE
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Plato (427-347 BC)
