A major earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale jolted Wenchuan county in southwest China's Sichuan province at 2:28 p.m. Monday or on May 12, according to State Seismological Bureau (SSB).
This devastating quake, which shook over half of China, has been affecting the whole nation. What transmitting along with the seismic wave is news on losses caused by the quake in Wenchuan and other adjacent areas.
The damages inflicted by the quake have been on the minds of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State Council, or the Chinese government. Party General Secretary Hu Jintao immediately ordered utmost efforts for Sichuan quake victims so as to guarantee their safety.
Premier Wen Jiaobao rushed to the disaster area to direct the rescue and relief work. The State Council set up the quake rescue and relief work headquarters with Wen as chief commander. Only hours later, SSB, the State Disaster Relief Commission and the Ministry of Civil Affairs made emergency contingency relief to the quake-hit area for protecting the lives and property of the quake-effected victims. All this has enabled people to see the deep concern of the Party and government for people in the quake inflicted area as well as their resolve to carry out quake rescue and relief effort.
The damages incurred by the quake have also stirred the hearts of Chinese people. In a matter of hours, seismologists sent by Yunnan, Tibet and other neighboring provinces or regions rushed to Sichuan. China's Rehabilitation and Poverty Alleviation Fund soon issued a donation proposal, and the Red Cross Society of China allocated relief materials. People concern themselves with every piece of information transmitted from the quake area and pay heed to the safety of the quake affected people.
A couple of new briefings were called by the state and local seismological bureaus with statistical figures released regarding latest casualties and updated timely on the internet, and media reports also publicized the latest quake-related information.
With the rapid nationwide release of losses caused by the quake on radio and the internet, people have not got into panic, and their anxiety have been consoled or soothed instead, and a composed, cohesive force gathered throughout China.
"Governments are required to take the initiative in releasing information which "affects the immediate interests of individuals and groups" or which "ought to be widely known and demands public participation". With the "Decree of Government Information Openness" taking effect around China since 1 May 2008, it has become a resolute requirement of law to build a transparent, "sunshine" government. So it has been turned into the new norm of information release that "disclosure is the principle and detention the exception".
Timeliness and ways of information release are entirely different with regard to the Wenchuan county quake and several big calamities that had occurred before the launch of China's reform and opening-up 30 years ago. We are deeply grieved but feel somewhat gratified. More than three decades have elapsed after all, and we have experienced the great reform and opening up after all. We were heart-broken with May 12, as we lost thousands of our dear compatriots, but we also felt a little gratified as the information was released timely with openness and we are more convinced to cope with contingency, become more composed and million upon million of people even more united as one.
Information openness is required by the endeavor for disaster relief and it represents the respect and cherishment of the Party and government for the right of people to know the truth. In the final analysis, it is their respect and cherishment for ordinary people, and indeed gives expression to the outlook that "the people come first". A government with people at heart is surely the government to respect the people's right to know the truth.
What particularly fortunate is that a government with its faith in people catches up with a website era of extremely sophisticated information technologies and, with each supplementing and enriching the other, they have brought peace of mind, tranquility, power and the prompt help in time of needs. South China's Guangdong province free-released 4.2 million contingency mobile phone messages. Meanwhile, the People's Daily Online opened on its special front-page columns "I mail message for the quake-hit area" and for "netizens to introduce their personal recounts of earthquakes", and communities in all corners of the nation offer a column "Please tell us the latest information from the Sichuan quake area," etc.
With a share of information, we feel warmth toward each other and will become fearless and undaunted.
By People's Daily Online and its author is Lu Xia
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