China clears memorial to mass killing amid outrage
ZHUHAI, China—Authorities in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai removed wreaths, candles and even bottles of Chinese alcohol 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 center in the city of 2.5 million, killing 35 people and injuring 43, but the government took almost a day to announce the death toll.
This prompted an outrage on Chinese 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.
‘Travel well’
Despite the efforts to clear the site in Zhuhai, which is near Macau, delivery drivers on motorbikes kept dropping off fresh flowers on Wednesday morning, even as authorities erected temporary barriers around the makeshift vigil area and deployed security personnel.
“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.
Some wreaths 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.”
Air show
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 People’s Liberation Army’s largest annual airshow, where a new stealth jet fighter is on display for the first time.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV did not mention the attack in its 30-minute midday news bulletin.
Instead, the program led with President Xi Jinping’s departure for the Apec summit in Peru and devoted a portion of the airtime to the airshow.
