Three Chinese men who tried to make T-shirts asking the government to take responsibility for the high number of casualties from the Sichuan earthquake were arrested. The whereabouts of one of the three, Mr. Li Zhuoxi, remains unknown.
In explaining their reasons for making the shirts, the men wrote in an article, “In this Sichuan disaster, so many children’s lives vanished in an instant. We must ask: Who is at fault?!
“We should bravely step forward and look for those responsible. These lessons should be written on T-shirts and worn by us as a reminder of this man-made disaster, and to help show respect for human life.
“We sympathize with our fellow countrymen’s plight and support their requests. We hope the government can listen to the voices of the people, accept their suggestions, reveal the truth, and prosecute those who are responsible.”
The three men designed T-shirts and planned to print pictures of some of the victims on the T-shirts. On June 3, police in central China’s Changsha City, Hunan Province arrested the individuals when they tried to contact a factory to make 100 T-shirts. Their computer was also confiscated.
By 10 p.m. that evening, two of the three men were released. However, Li Zhuoxi remains missing and is believed to still be under arrest.
Civil Rights & Livelihood Watch is a civil rights website organized by mainland Chinese.
