China: Construction boom causes deadly mudslide

Reuters/China Daily

A massive man-made mountain of dirt and construction debris broke apart in Shenzhen, China, Dec. 20, and turned into a landslide, knocking over dozens of factories and workers’ dormitories. More than 15 acres were covered with 20-foot deep mud. The unstable dump was the product of capitalist greed and disregard for the thousands who lived and worked in its vicinity. Government sources say 91 people are missing, but no one knows how many lie buried beneath the muck.

In the frenzy of capitalist expansion Shenzhen was transformed from a fishing village in the 1970s to a “special economic zone,” expanding to become one of China’s main industrial hubs with more than 10 million residents.

An abandoned and water-logged quarry was turned into a trash dump for construction waste licensed by the city several years ago. In spite of warnings from the Zongxing Environmental Technology company that the huge and growing heap was unstable and a landslide possible, the local government allowed dumping to continue until the inevitable happened. Eight other such dumping sites are still operating in the city.

Breakneck construction by Chinese capitalists, aided by government stimulus and subsidies, has led to numerous disasters for working people. In August a warehouse close to a residential area in the northeastern city of Tianjin exploded, killing 173 people. The construction industry is notorious for its unsafe working conditions. On Oct. 30, at least 17 workers were killed and another 23 injured when a building collapsed in Henan, one of more than 150 major incidents officially reported this year.

— MAGGIE TROWE