Parents of children killed when a school collapsed in the May 12 earthquake protested outside a court in Dujiangyan yesterday, as dissatisfaction with the way the government has handled the situation grows.
More than 100 parents of students from a high school in Juyuan, a town administered by Dujiangyan, held up photos of their dead children, a participant said. No arrests were made, although police removed some, apparently because journalists were watching.
Parents from other areas in the quake-hit region have held protests and memorial ceremonies, but this was the first by these parents.
The protest occurred as Li Changchun , a member of the powerful Politburo Standing Committee, visited Dujiangyan yesterday. Mr Li inspected dams and cultural relics damaged in the quake.
The parents had hoped to file a lawsuit at the court yesterday, but they claimed the government had pressured their lawyer into staying away. 'Our aim is to use the law,' said the father of one of the children killed in the quake.
An estimated 260 to 270 students and six teachers died when the school collapsed. Witnesses say three buildings - the oldest dating back to 1988 and a newer wing to 1995 - crumbled when the quake struck.
'It is 'tofu' construction,' the mother of another dead student said, referring to the building's poor quality. 'It's the fault of the local officials.'