"I think the government and the owners of the Diamond Island have to be responsible for the tragedy": Sat Narith, student at the National University of Cambodia

Question raised on accountability for stampede on national mourning day

by Zhuli Ngoun Sovan

PHNOM PENH, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- When Meas Neang bent down and plug joss sticks into the burner on the altar, the sorrow seemed so heavy that she could hardly stand up again.

"I am not blaming any small and big officials, I just wonder why 'happiness turned to anguish'," said the 57-year-old woman, who came from Kandal province to Phnom Penh to dedicate lotus buds and incense sticks to those killed in Monday's stampede.

She was worried that she might lose her younger brother forever in the tragedy, which, in the final day of the traditional Water Festival, claimed at least 347 lives and injured more than 300 others.

"My brother has gone missing since the stampede. He said he came to enjoy the Water Festival in Phnom Penh and asked me for 100,000 riel ($25) to enjoy the festival," she said, tears in eyes. And after that she had never heard anything about him. "I cannot find him, we asked our relatives, no one has seen him. And it has been three days."

The mourning rite site is right at the entrance of the bridge connecting Diamond Island and the mainland of the capital city. Monday night on that bridge, thousands of joyful people began to panicked on some rumor that the "bridge is collapsing," and the subsequent stampede killed hundreds of them.

As Thursday was announced the National Mourning Day for the dead, since early morning thousands of mourners have lined up and paid their homage to the dead, laying lotus, flowers, bananas, food and burning buddhist joss sticks to pray for the dead to rest in peace.

The official mourning rite begun at 7 a.m. as Prime Minister Hun Sen and his wife Bun Rany Hun Sen showed up and offered incense sticks, followed by the top and lower-ranking government officials, senators, parliamentarians, monks, civil servants, private companies, ordinary people and students.

The entrance of the bridge has been piled with lotus, flowers, incense sticks and dozens of wreaths.

All schools, government agencies and private enterprises across the country fling flags at half-mast and all the places of amusement will keep closed till midnight.

As the initial shock, worry and sorrow faint, however, people began to raise questions why a tragedy like this happened.

"I just can't understand why so many people were killed; I wonder why the throngs were intertwined together and were hard to separate them; I also wonder now that the festival was very big and very crowded, why the security guards do not warn the people about the danger, " said Neang.

Sat Narith, 21, a student at the National University of Cambodia, said that she was very grieved with the unexpected accident in her country. "I would like to share my condolence with the families of the dead. I don't have any friend or relative suffered from the stampede, but I, as a Cambodian, came to mourn the dead," said she.

"I think the government and the owners of the Diamond Island have to be responsible for the tragedy," said she, adding that the government should strengthen its security forces to prevent such accident from happening again in the future. "They should warn people about the danger when it is too crowded," Narith said.

Om Yinteang, vice-chairman of the anti-terrorism unit and vice-chairman of the special committee for the accident investigation said Thursday that 395 injured are being hospitalized in various hospitals in the capital city and among them 20 to 25 percent are still in critical condition.

Drew McDowell, an American working in Phnom Penh, told reporters he was a Buddhist believer, after he offered the incense sticks to the altar.

"I am here to mourn the dead and one friend of mine was injured, "said the country manager of NGO-Village Earth in Cambodia.

His friend, a 14-year-old girl, used to be in the coma for two hours after surviving the stampede, and was still in the hospital. "now she can't walk properly yet, but she's recovering," he said.

He seemed still not able to accept what happened three days ago. "I work with young people in Cambodia for one and a half year and so many young Cambodia people just had died terribly. I still can't believe," said he.

Yes, a lot of motions had been taken by the government to look at in this accident, he said; and though not sure who should be blamed for this fault, he insisted "it's a lesson to be learnt for the government for the future -- they should not encourage so many people to converge at a small place like this bridge."