A fire broke out in the Jixiangyuan community in Urumqi city on the evening of November 24. Excessive closures are suspected to have prevented residents from fleeing and rescuing, causing casualties. Officials said 10 people were killed and 9 injured. The incident prompted people in many parts of the country to mourn the dead and triggered a series of demonstrations to express their dissatisfaction with the epidemic prevention and control policy. In Hong Kong, this evening (28) dozens of citizens held up white papers in Central.
Many citizens also placed flowers, candles and greeting cards at the scene. Some people wrote on the sheet, “People come first, life comes first, rest in peace” and “We mourn deeply 11.23 Urumqi”. Some of the words they were written in simplified characters.
Many police officers stood guard at the scene, pulling up orange belts during the time to intercept those showing blank papers and using loudspeakers to warn those present that they might be violating the no-gathering order. Around 20:00, when the social movement goer “Grandma Wang” raised her umbrella and shouted slogans, a man suddenly rushed forward and snatched Grandma Wang’s umbrella and threw it at Earth. Grandma Wang was also pushed to the ground. police carry police car.
