Secrecy Kills

Water in the north-eastern Chinese city of Harbin has been declared safe after a toxic chemical leak. Running water was switched off to the city’s 3.8mn people for five days after 100 tonnes of benzene spilt from a petrochemicals plant into the Songhua River. The authorities initially declared that the water supply was being turned off for maintenance work, but were eventually forced to come clean. The case highlights the problem of official secrecy in China.

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