The article speaks for itself:
Thirty-five miners are reported dead and another 16 missing in two coal mine accidents in northern China that underscore the dismal plight of many Chinese workers on International Labour Day.
The accidents came as China pledged to improve worker’s rights and as a Hong Kong-based labour rights group warned that a total lack of independent worker’s organizations was contributing to the appalling safety record in Chinese mines.
A gas explosion ripped through a mine in northern Shanxi province on Friday leaving 35 dead and one missing, while 15 miners were feared dead after a flood in an illegally operating mine in neighboring Inner Mongolia, officials and press reports said Saturday.
Shanxi governor Zhang Baoshun was overseeing rescue operations and the investigation into the blast at the Liangjiahe state-owned mine near Linfen city, Hou Jieyan, a spokesman for the Shanxi Coal Mining Safety Inspection Bureau told AFP.
Although the governor interrupted his holiday to direct operatons at the accident site, before the blast the mine had intended to work through the week-long labour holiday to avoid costly safety procedures.
One of the mines had been closed down days earlier for safety reasons but was operating clandestinely.
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