Police close off the Waterglade industrial estate in Thurrock, Essex after 39 bodies were found in the back of a lorry believed to have come from Bulgaria. Photo: IC

Chinese Foreign Ministry  slammed a CNN reporter's question on the Essex truck deaths as "inappropriate" on Friday after the reporter asked why "Chinese citizens left China" in such a dangerous way when China had just celebrated PRC's 70th founding anniversary.

Hua Chunying, spokesperson of Foreign Ministry, made the remarks at Friday's regular press briefing. 

China has been in close contact with the British police, and they are still verifying the identity of the victims. So far, it cannot be confirmed that they are Chinese citizens or not, Hua said. 

"You just assumed they were Chinese and linked this case with the celebration of the 70th anniversary of People's Republic of China, which was wrong from the start. What kind of answers do you want to get?" Hua asked the reporter.

Post-mortem analysis will be done on some of the 39 people found in a truck in Essex, after 11 bodies were brought to a local hospital on Thursday, British media reported.

Local police said a man and a woman have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people in connection with the case, the ITV reported on Friday. Police previously arrested the truck driver.

Under the current situation, Hua said everyone should feel sad for the 39 lives lost, and that countries should strengthen cooperation and crack down on illegal immigration. The most urgent task is to find the truth and solve these problems, Hua said.

Since the founding of the PRC, Chinese people have enjoyed unprecedented levels of happiness, fulfillment, security and satisfaction. The 1.4 billion people feel proud of our great achievements, Hua noted. 

"China is not a country with serious illegal immigration issues. On the contrary, I know that more and more foreign friends want to come to China to study, travel, work and even settle permanently in. I think that's saying a lot," she added.  

Global Times