Memorial Service Held For Victims Of Xizang Earthquake

LHASA, Jan 13 (Bernama-Xinhua) -- A memorial service was held on Monday in remembrance of the victims of the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Dingri County in Xizang Autonomous Region, southwest China, last week, reported Xinhua.

At 9.30 am, sirens resonated throughout Chamco Township, where the event was held. A giant board, with white Mandarin and Tibetan characters, reading "deeply mourning" the dead in the Dingri earthquake, stood in the township square.

Hundreds of people, including government officials, rescue workers and residents, took off their hats and stood in silence for three minutes in memory of the dead.

At resettlement sites, traditional Tibetan butter lamps flickered in some prefab houses, as people mourned their relatives and friends.

On Jan 7, the strong earthquake hit Dingri, home to the northern base camp of the world's highest peak, Mount Qomolangma, claiming 126 lives.

Tsering Pingtso, Party chief of Gurum Village in Dingri, lost his mother in the earthquake. "May the deceased rest in peace," said Tsering Pingtso, who could not hold his tears during the memorial service.

The village official, despite his grief, dedicated himself to relief efforts. He said all the 107 residents in the village had moved from tents into prefab houses, three days after the earthquake.

"Adversity will not weaken our resolve. We will turn grief into strength to build a more beautiful and prosperous home with all our might," said Pasang, the executive vice mayor of the city of Xigaze, which administers Dingri.

As of Monday, 337 injured have been treated, 407 people have been rescued and over 47,500 affected have been properly accommodated.

Monday marks the seventh day after the quake, the most important day for observing Buddhist rituals for the dead.

After the earthquake, Panchen Erdeni Chos-kyi rGyal-po, a member of the Standing Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and vice president of the Buddhist Association of China, held several prayer sessions, during which he and fellow monks chanted scriptures and prayed that all lives in the disaster-stricken areas may soon be freed from calamities and rebuild their homes.  

-- BERNAMA-XINHUA