Officials in the city have taken into custody thirteen people on suspected charges of manslaughter related to last week’s catastrophic blaze, amid increasing criticism over the detentions of citizens demanding responsibility.
Emergency services persisted in combing through the seven towers of the Wang Fuk Court residential area in the Tai Po district on the start of the week, following the most fatal blaze in seven and a half decades. The death toll reached 151 and is expected to rise higher as the search continues. About forty people are still missing.
The estate, home to nearly 5,000 people, had been undergoing extensive renovations that have been linked to the fire’s cause. In the aftermath, public fury has grown over reported previous safety breaches by the contractor working at the location and lax enforcement of safety codes, fuelled by revelations that occupants had been complaining about the renovations for a year.
On Monday afternoon, authorities said the anti-graft agency had arrested thirteen people over the tragedy so far, including the directors and an engineering consultant of a contracting firm, and had “promptly initiated a thorough probe along the lines of involuntary manslaughter”.
A top administrator stated that 7 of 20 tested specimens of the scaffolding net used around the towers did not meet fire-retardant standards. Initial testing had found materials were compliant, but the spokesperson said the cheaper, noncompliant netting had been put in areas hard to reach in order to evade detection, labeling it a “shameful act”.
“They just wanted to profit at the expense of people’s lives,” he said.
As allegations of safety violations mount, alongside reports that government authorities had issued several seemingly unenforced warnings, residents have asked why no officials have yet been held accountable. Conversely, two members of the public were reportedly taken into custody by national security police.
A person, named as a local student, was arrested over an online petition that made “four requests” for guaranteed support for the victims and accountability for those at to blame, including any corrupt or culpable government officials.
Local media said the individual was arrested for “seditious intention”. Law enforcement did not confirm the detention, saying only that they “will take actions according to actual circumstances and in compliance with the law”.
Local media also reported the detention of a former district councillor.
Questioned about the arrests, the security chief said there had been “misleading statements on the internet” that were aimed to threaten public security. “Therefore, we must take appropriate measures, including law enforcement measures,” the official told a media briefing. “Specifics of the operation cannot be disclosed as they concern national security.”
On local online platforms, people condemned the detention of citizens. “National security must be prioritised even if the dead are still buried in the structure,” said one.
Several users made parallels to mainland China. “The mainland, these crimes are called ‘creating disturbances’,” said one commenter. “They are typically punished with heavy sentences. Stability overrides everything.”
Another said: “Now that we are following the mainland’s approach, by targeting the person who raises the question, no one will venture to question, and thus the city's administration will have no problems.”
The arrests followed warnings by security officials that they would crack down on anyone deemed to be using the tragedy to incite “anti-China” sentiment.
Before the arrests, authorities had already demonstrated heightened sensitivity to the public reaction. Since the quelling of earlier protests, civilian gatherings have been tightly controlled. In the immediate aftermath, volunteer supporters quickly organized aid operations, with hundreds of people employing cars and transit to deliver mountains of garments, supplies and other essentials for the survivors.
Nevertheless, by nightfall, officers were patrolling the vicinity, and public authorities soon took over from the community coordinators.
The petition over which the student was allegedly arrested was initiated on Friday evening. Its “four points” echoed the terminology of previous campaigns but did not advocate systemic reform.
The individual informed media that he was only “proposing fundamental demands”.
“If these ideas are considered seditious or ‘crossing the line’, then I feel I cannot foresee the outcomes of anything any more, and I can only do what I sincerely think is correct,” he stated.
