Premier: China to compile quake victim name list

Source: Xinhua | 09-17-2008 09:29

BEIJING, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- China will compile a list of persons confirmed dead or listed missing in the massive May 12 earthquake that left more than 80,000 dead and millions homeless.

The list will be published via local media and subject to a final examination, Premier Wen Jiabao said at a recent meeting on quake rehabilitation in Sichuan Province.

The move was to show respect for the victims, Wen said in his lengthy speech, which was published on Tuesday.

Wen said the quake-relief had achieved a "major victory" and the country had minimized its losses from the disaster.

According to statistics, rescuers dug out 84,000 survivors from the rubble, moved more than 1.486 million people to safer places and gave medical treatment to 2.96 million injured.

Another 96,000 were sent to hospitals, of whom more than 92,000have been discharged.

The government also provided financial aid to 10.584 million people who had financial problems due to the quake, including 286,000 orphans, elderly and disabled people living alone. It resettled 15.1 million people whose houses were damaged or whose neighborhoods became dangerous structurally.

Wen said it would take up to three years to complete the rehabilitation program and ensure that living conditions and economic development in the region would reach or surpass pre-quake levels.

The quake, measuring 8.0 on the Richter Scale, centered on Wenchuan County in the southwestern Sichuan Province. It was the deadliest and strongest tremor to hit China since the 1976 Tangshan earthquake.

Strong aftershocks continued to hit the province and its neighboring region afterwards, causing new casualties and further damage.

Editor:Xiong Qu