CHINESE authorities have penalised 10 people accused of spreading misinformation online about a deadly mudslide along the Nepal border, police said, as rescuers scour for hundreds missing at a border crossing on the Tibetan side.
The penalties, which could range from fines to 10 days in detention, come as rescuers on both sides of the border pressed on with search operations after a devastating wall of water tore through parts of Nepal and Tibet in China last week, sweeping away entire villages.
Rumours shared by the 10 individuals suggested that the number of missing or dead was vastly more than officially reported figures, according to a statement by the cybersecurity bureau of China’s Ministry of Public Security.
One individual, surnamed Qiu, had shared online that “the news reports 1,400 fatalities, but in reality 3,000 people had previously been reported missing”, while another surnamed Liu had said more than 3,000 people died in China as a result of the mudslide, the statement added.
The authorities did not specify what penalty each person received.
At least 16 people have died and another 546 are missing in Chinese-administered Tibet, where the mudslide flattened an area of “about 0.7 sq km” – the equivalent of 98 football pitches, Chinese state media reported.
Asked about international reports that China was censoring images of the floods and underreporting deaths, Beijing’s foreign ministry said yesterday that the “release of information has been open, transparent and timely”.
“Malicious smearing and sensationalism using the disaster situation will not receive popular support,” ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a news conference.
China’s Xinhua news agency reported earlier yesterday that emergency workers were racing against time and the odds to search for survivors.
Rescuers were “pushing forward into the core disaster area” despite challenges such as “high-altitude terrain, steep valleys and volatile weather”, it added.
They were “carrying out road mud removal, search and rescue operations, hazard identification, disinfection and epidemic prevention, as well as clearing and restoring damaged routes” in Tibet. — AFP
