(May 11, 2009) The Chinese government is facing more criticism concerning its earthquake safety plans. A recent article in the Southern Weekend by Qian Gang asks if officials have turned any of their earthquake safety plans–dating back to 2005–into action. Translated by China Media Project:

If you make a careful reading of the speech delivered by Zhang Peizhen of the China Earthquake Administration’s Institute of Geology to the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on June 30, 2008, everything becomes clear instantly. Zhang, who is head of the Institute of Geology, said: “In 2004, the China Earthquake Administration organized earthquake experts from around the country to carry out research on earthquake rise from 2005 to 2020. They designed 22 areas around the country that were considered to be priority regions for earthquake monitoring and defense.”

The documents released by the State Council and by various provincial and city governments at that time were clearly part of an overall government push for earthquake disaster prevention.

But the burning question is: were these documents actually translated into action?

Click here for the article.

China Digital Times, from the Southern Weekend, May 11, 2009