Gov't apologizes for cremating victims of landslide (2)

LAST DIGNITY

The landslide, which occurred in Gaopo Village, Zhenxiong County, on Friday, killed 46 villagers and injured another two.

Rescuers recovered the bodies within 28 hours of the landslide, and they used their bare hands to retrieve the remains and give the victims their "final dignity."

County government officials had promised to handle the bodies in accordance with the families' wishes. But authorities had cremated all the bodies by Sunday, fueling anger among the victims' families.

According to tradition in the Yi ethnicity-dominated village, the dead are usually buried, not cremated.

"I rushed home to see my parents for the last time. Still, I failed to see them," said Gaopo villager Wang Fazhen as he stood in front of a tent meant for temporary shelter with a baby on his back. He lost 27 family members in the landslide.

Most of the victims' family members work in cities and were not there at the time of the disaster. They said they did not even have a chance to say goodbye to their deceased relatives because of the unapproved cremations.

Meanwhile, netizens suspect the government is hiding something, and have criticized it for depriving the dead of their "final dignity."

"What I want now is simply a detailed and accurate explanation," said Luo Yuanju, who lost 14 family members in the tragedy.