Tai Po fire: public accountability needed to honour those who died

While celebrating the Chung Yeung Festival, we are reminded of the harvest, family reunions and the need to pay our respects to those who have departed. Spooky season is upon us, too, and Halloween is about more than just trick-or-treating. It also reminds us of the autumn harvests and those who have recently passed.

The victims of the Tai Po fire – the city’s worst disaster in recent memory – are very much on our minds. The 168 lives lost and the homes ravaged as buildings burned for more than 44 hours last November shook Hong Kong to its core. The city showed a sense of community we haven’t seen in a long time.

We also learned just how far our systems have fallen short in protecting Hongkongers’ lives and property. Even in the early days after the blaze, questions were raised over how the overlapping systems designed to avert disasters like the Wang Fuk Court inferno had failed.

If the government suppresses the independent committee’s findings on the fire over privacy concerns, it will convince no one of its commitment to accountability