(Broadcast on July 27, 2002)
According to information received on July 26, 2002 from the State Administration for Coal Mine Safety Supervision (SACMSS) a gas explosion occurred on July 24, at 7pm at the Taojiawan coal mine. The Taojiawan pit is in Yushe town, Shuicheng county, Liupanshui city in Guizhou province. Initial reports stated that there were 25 people working in the pit at the time of whom18 were killed and seven injured. The local Liupanshui Daily not only failed to report the accident, but also actually ran an article two days after the accident with the title "Liupanshui Coal Management Turns the Corner". I telephoned the newspaper and spoke to an editor from the news agency.
Editorial Department:
We've got experience with this kind of news. For example, today they will report 10 people [killed] and tomorrow 12. These small coal mines are pretty chaotic and located in remote places. They wont give you an honest count of how many people are down at the face. They'll say two and we report that figure and the next day it turns out to be three. So with this kind of news, we often don't even send a journalist to the scene. In fact, even if we did, it's still really hard to get a thorough picture of what happened. Local people daren't talk. The higher authorities send people down to conduct an investigation sooner or later and then we can get a formal version of events, which is what we use.
A trade union cadre answered the phone at the Liupanshui Federation of Trade Unions (LFTU) office and told me that they had already sent people to the site of the accident. As there are no telephones in the village, they still hadn't got any concrete information about the accident or whether they were helping with compensation to family members.
LFTU:
We are definitely helping. Our people are still down there. They're not back yet.
Han:
Will the union be assisting the victim's family members to get fair compensation?
LFTU:
I am not sure of the situation. Nobody's got back to us yet.
Han:
They haven't called you on the phone?
LFTU:
There are no phones down there! If there were, we would have got the news earlier.
Han:
They haven't even got a phone in the village?
LFTU:
No. Definitely not.
Han:
What about the local town?
LFTU:
Couldn't tell you. So far, no one from the town has contacted us. You should contact the city government and see if they know anything.
I telephoned Yushe town and spoke with a government official who told me that the family of each dead miner had received Rmb 15,000 in compensation.
Official:
We began contacting the next-of-kin immediately after the accident and the government has already announced compensation of Rmb 15,000 or Rmb 15,400. People
are reasonably satisfied with these amounts.
Han:
Where will the cash come from?
Official:
It will initially come from the town.
Han:
So at the end of the day, who will pay the compensation?
Official:
I am not too sure. One of the mine bosses is dead, I heard, and the other one has fled. Right now the dead miners were kept in coffins. As soon as the relatives arrive we can start transporting them. So far, we have recovered 18 bodies.
I spoke with an injured miner at the local hospital. He told me that as far as he was aware, there were 31 people in the shaft at the time of the accident, considerably more than the official count of 25 people.
Han:
Hello. Are you one of the injured miners?
Injured Miner:
Yes.
Han:
Where are you hurt?
Injured Miner:
My back.
Han:
A back injury?
Injured Miner:
That's right.
Han:
From a fall or burns?
Injured Miner:
A fall.
Han:
A fall?
Injured Miner:
That's right.
Han:
How far from the actual explosion were you?
Injured Miner:
On a track about midway from the explosion.
Han:
Midway?
Injured Miner:
Yes
..
Han:
What caused the explosion?
Injured Miner:
It was gas. There was a sparky (electrician) working down there and as soon as he connected the current, the gas blew.
Han:
Was there any ventilation equipment in the shaft?
Injured Miner:
No.
Han:
No ventilation at all?
Injured Miner:
None at all!
Han:
How deep is the shaft?
Injured Miner:
Two hundred metres plus
Han:
Over two hundred metres?
Injured Miner:
That's right. No lift either.
Han:
No cage to take miners down to the face?
Injured Miner:
No cage.
Han:
Is this an one-eyed shaft [just one entry and exit point Ed.] we're talking about?
Injured Miner:
Yes.
Han:
With no ventilation equipment whatsoever?
Injured Miner:
That's right.
Han:
How many people were in the shaft at the time of the accident?
Injured Miner:
Thirty one.
Han:
Thirty one?
Injured Miner:
Yes.
Finally, I managed to get through to the Liupanshui Coal Bureau chief, a Mr. Jiang, who led the investigation into the accident.
Jiang:
This mine was one of these illegal outfits operating without a permit. The owner comes from Yunnan province. He originally bought the mine from local peasants.
Han:
When?
Jiang:
At the beginning of July.
Han:
When he bought it, was it running legally or illegally?
Jiang:
Illegal.
Han:
Couldn't the local village cadres see it was operating illegally?
Jiang:
We are looking into that at the moment.
Han:
Are we possibly looking at a cover up by the local village cadres?
Jiang:
I can't say yet. The investigation has only formally got under way today. The provincial team has just got here and we are now getting with a formal investigation.
Mr. Jiang also talked about the discrepancies between the central government policy of limiting production and closing smaller pits and the concrete situation on the ground.
Jiang:
We are facing real and extensive difficulties here in Guizhou, especially in the poorer areas. This policy of discovering a pit and closing it immediately is, well it's not so simple. After all these mines are in very remote and mountainous areas. Although it is a matter of 10km, we have to cross mountains to get to these places. Once we arrive in some valley or other, well some of these places conceal what's going on. They don't work in the day and then secretly carry on the operation at night. A good policy would be to outlaw the illegal outfits but at the same time allow the ones with reasonable conditions, permits and investment potential to develop. We should develop legal mines with comparatively good safety conditions. This would facilitate the comparatively poor areas that are otherwise totally reliant on farming. The mines can create jobs to take up the surplus labour in these places. Our idea is to combine the closures on safety grounds with development where conditions are right. But there is a problem here as the national policy is to limit production and shut the smaller pits. Just shutting them all down is not the answer; we need an integrated approach.
I then talked to two more miners who were receiving treatment in the local town hospital. They told me that they were shifting 100-kilogram sacks of coal along the shaft line when they were blown off their feet by the force of the explosion. The following is how they described typical working conditions in the mine and also why they were prepared to leave their villages and risk their lives digging coal. We start with a miner from Yunnan:
Injured miner:
I am from Shengli Town, Xuanwei City, Yunnan Province.
Han:
How old are you?
Injured miner:
Fifty.
Han:
Fifty years old?
Injured miner:
That's right.
Han:
Why did you decide to come and work digging coal?
Injured miner:
We are having difficulties at home buying fertiliser [for the crops] so I came here to earn a bit of cash to buy the stuff. Also we need money to pay for the kids education.
Han:
So you're trying to cover your costs?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How much did you earn a month?
Injured miner:
Over ten bucks a day.
Han:
Rmb 10 a day?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
Do you have labour contract?
Injured miner:
No.
Han:
And when you came to work here, did you know that the mine didn't have an operations permit.
Injured miner:
I didn't know.
Han:
What about medical and industrial accident insurance? Does your employer bother with these?
Injured miner:
No chance.
Han:
No?
Injured miner:
That's right, no.
Han:
What did you see when the explosion took place in the shaft?
Injured miner:
We were moving stuff out along the path from the coal face.
Han:
So the blast was behind you?
Injured miner:
Yes. Some people were carrying two hundred pounds of coal some up to four hundred.
Han:
You were bringing the coal out?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
Is the coal you guys dig brought out by workers or by coal trucks?
Injured miner:
By people. We bring it out in large bamboo baskets. .
Han:
In wicker baskets?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How much coal can you carry in one basket?
Injured miner:
Depends. From 60 kilos up to 90 kilos or more. We carry them on our backs.
Han:
How long have you been at the mine?
Injured miner:
Three or four days.
Han:
Just three or four days?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How do they work your wages? How much can you make per tonne of coal?
Injured miner:
Two dollars (Rmb) per 100 kilos of coal.
Han:
They pay you Rmb two for every 100 kilos of coal you bring out?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How much do you have to dig?
Injured miner:
It works out at 70 cents for every 100 kilos dug.
Han:
Seventy cents for every 100 kilos worth of digging?
Injured miner:
Yes.
The next person I talked with is a local miner:
Han:
Hello. Excuse me. Are you one of the injured miners?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How old are you?
Injured miner:
Twenty five.
Han:
Twenty five this year?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
How long have you been working here?
Injured miner:
That same day [of the blast]. I started working on the 24th.
Han:
On the 24th?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
And you were on shift when the accident happened?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
Are you a local man?
Injured miner:
Yes. From Pingzai town.
Han:
Pingzai town?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
Were you working at home on the fields before the 24th?
Injured miner:
That's right.
Han:
And why did you come here to work as a coal miner?
Injured miner:
We're in trouble at home. We've got land but no money.
Han:
You can't get enough from working the land?
Injured miner:
Yes. We can't make ends meet just by working the land.
Han:
Not even basic living costs?
Injured miner:
Not even that.
Han:
Are you married?
Injured miner:
Yes.
Han:
Any kids?
Injured miner:
One child.
Han:
How is the child?
Injured miner:
Three years old.
Han:
Three?
Injured miner:
That's right.