China clears memorial to mass killing victims as government scrambles to respond

Authorities in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai removed wreaths, candles and 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 about 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 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.

Despite 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.

“It’s a spontaneous feeling I had. Even though I don’t know them personally, I had family members who passed away so I understand that feeling,” said Zheng.

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.”

After initially allowing journalists to briefly speak to  people laying the flowers, a handful of security personnel told reporters not to talk to the people or to film messages on the bouquets.

The attack happened as Zhuhai captured China's attention with the People's Liberation Army's largest annual air show, 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 programme led with President Xi Jinping's departure for the Apec summit in Peru and devoted a portion of the airtime to the air show.

Other state media, such as China Daily's Chinese language website, also prominently displayed the news of Xi's upcoming visit to Peru. The current affairs part of China Daily's website and the local area page did not mention the incident.

Hundreds of rescue personnel were deployed to provide emergency treatment, and more than 300 healthcare workers from five hospitals worked around the clock to save lives, state media's Beijing Daily reported on Tuesday.

There was no indication the attack was related to the air show. It was the second such incident to occur during the Zhuhai air show. In 2008, at least four people were killed and 20 injured when a man drove a truck into a crowded schoolyard during the air show. Police said the attacker had been seeking revenge over a traffic dispute.

Xi, cited by CCTV on Tuesday, ordered all-out efforts to treat the injured and demanded severe punishment for the perpetrator. The central government has dispatched a team to provide guidance on handling the case, CCTV said.

Violent crime is rare in China due to tight security and strict gun laws. However, a rise in reports of knife attacks in large cities has drawn public attention to safety in public spaces.

The deadliest attack Reuters was able to identify in recent years in China took place in Urumqi, in China's western Xinjiang region, in 2014 when suicide bombers killed 39 people and four of the five attackers died.

Reuters