A year after the Sichuan earthquake that killed nearly
70,000 people, parents who lost their only child in the quake have been
continually thwarted in their search for answers about their kids’ deaths.
Seven thousand classrooms collapsed in the quake, many of them
surrounded by other buildings that remained standing. Grief-stricken parents
have spent the last year pressuring the government to give them answers about
the construction of school buildings, which they claim were built with
substandard materials to cut costs.
A new report from Amnesty International reveals that not
only has the government failed to provide answers about the shoddy construction
of schools, but they have repeatedly detained parents and concerned relatives
who have marched or contacted authorities in relation to the kids’ deaths. Some
relatives have been held for as long as 21 days, and one of the detained was
only eight-years-old.
A new HBO documentary, which will air this Thursday at 8,
examines parents’ struggles for government accountability, and will hopefully
increase international pressure on China to give these bereaved parents some peace
of mind in the form of an investigation and a promise to uphold safe building
standards in the future.
Photo: New York Times
