In China’s southern city of Zhuhai, authorities removed wreaths, candles and bottles of Chinese alcohol, offerings laid at the scene of the deadliest mass killing in the country in a decade, as the government scrambled to respond and censor the outrage online.
On Monday, a male driver angry at his divorce settlement rammed his car into a crowd at a sports centre in the city of 2.5 million, killing 35 people and injuring 43, but China’s government took almost a day to announce the death toll.
This prompted an outrage on China’s social media, where posts complaining about the government’s slow response and raising questions about the mental health of a nation shaken by a recent spate of similar killings, were being quickly removed.
“The authorities hadn’t released any information – some colleagues mentioned it and I couldn’t believe it at first, but it was confirmed later,” said a 50-year-old man who identified himself as Zheng who brought flowers to the site.
“It’s just a spontaneous feeling I had. Even though I don’t know them personally, I had family members who passed away in the past, so I understand that feeling,” said Zheng.
Delivery drivers on motor-bikes kept dropping off flowers at the site on Wednesday but the bouquets were being immediately removed by security personnel deployed there, sometimes even before a person was able to put them on the ground.
Some wreaths, captured on photographs by Reuters reporters, carried handwritten notes: “Strangers travel well. May there be no demons in heaven,” read one. On another: “May there be no thugs in heaven. Good will triumph over evil. Rest in peace.”
After initially allowing journalists to briefly speak to the people laying the flowers, a handful of security personnel sporting light blue uniforms and caps told reporters not to talk to the people or to film specific messages on the bouquets.
The attack happened as Zhuhai captured China’s attention with the largest aviation exhibition which every two years showcases the nation’s civil and military aerospace achievements and where a new stealth jet fighter is on display this year.
While there is no indication that the two events are related, China’s people often pick large national events with round-the-clock media coverage in an attempt to circumvent the tight censorship and highlight their grievances.
This was the second such incident to occur during the Zhuhai airshow: in 2008, at least four people were killed and 20 injured when a man drove a truck into a crowded schoolyard during the airshow. Police said that attacker had been seeking revenge over a traffic dispute.
With Reuters inputs
