Day of remembrance
- Source: Global Times
- [13:52 April 21 2010]
- Comments
Memorial ceremony is held in the town of Gyegu in Yushu, the epicenter of the 7.1-magnitude quake on Wednesday.
A 69-year-old Tibetan grandmother holds her one-year-old granddaughter Zhua Ga Raje at the square to remember the quake victims. Photo: Ying Guoliang
By Ying Guoliang
Exactly a week after the 7.1-magnitude earthquake hit Yushu County in Qinghai Province, Wednesday was a national mourning for the victims, with memorial ceremonies held in town of Gyegu and in King Gesar Square in Yushu at 10 am.
Volunteers, rescuers, and members of the public took part in the event, wearing black and a white paper flower on their chests for three minutes’ of silence for the earthquake victims.
The 69-year-old grandmother Yongcuo took her three granddaughters – one-year-old Zhuoga Raje, Angwen Lacuo, 6 and Nima Zhuoma 11, to King Gesar Square Wednesday morning.
Yongcuo lost all her things in the earthquake, but all her family members were saved by rescue workers. She specifically took her granddaughters to the square to mourn the victims and express her gratitude to the rescue workers.
Bo Ga, 59, also took her two daughters to the square. She said the Yushu earthquake killed so many people, including more than 20 of her relatives. Without the assistance from the Communist Party and government, Bo said more people would have been killed and injured. When the earthquake hit Yushu, the right side of Bo’s body was stuck under the ruins. Fortunately, she was saved by rescue workers, otherwise she may have also been one of the dead.
Thirty-three-year-old Tenzin Daji said the quake was so devastating that many people were killed. Although they have their own tradition of mourning, Tibetans still come here as volunteers to remember the quake victims and purge the souls of newborns.
A migrant worker surnamed Qi who is a Hui minority, accompanied 10 villagers to Gyegu to look for jobs. They just arrived a few days before the earthquake. He said that there is no difference between ethnic groups but only humans when facing a catastrophic disaster, which is why he felt it was important to go to the ceremony to mourn the victims.
