BUREAUCRACY and 'formalism' were partly responsible for the deaths of almost 400 people, mostly schoolchildren, in a fire in a remote oil town in northwestern Xinjiang, an official Chinese newspaper said.
In a commentary yesterday, the Beijing-based Economic Reference reported that 'bureaucratic cadres who adored formalities' might be indirectly responsible for the deaths.
The fire raged through the Friendship Hall cinema in Karamay, Xinjiang, on December 8 when it was packed with more than 700 people, including at least 500 schoolchildren.
A special cultural show was being presented by the children, described as the cream of local students, for a visiting education inspection team.
The 25-strong team was in Karamay to assess the seriousness of illiteracy and promote voluntary education in the area.
The latest death toll puts the number killed at 385, including more than 330 children.
'But the 25 education officials were apparently not among the dead and injured. They remained safe and nobody knew what they had done after the fire had broken out,' Economic Reference said.
