As Funds Roll In for Tragedy, Answers Sought

Photo: by Heng Reaksmey

The official death figure now at 347 dead, and more than 300 injured.

"We have to make sure that such a ‘killing field’ does not happen again.”

While some groups continued to raise funds for the families of those who died in the Diamond Bridge tragedy Monday, calls were raised for the cause and responsibility of the disaster.

With the official figure now at 347 dead, Mu Sochua, a lawmaker for the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, said the cause of the disaster must be uncovered and dealt with.

“We have to make sure that such a ‘killing field’ does not happen again,” Mu Sochua told VOA Khmer.

As with other groups from across Cambodia, Mu Sochua has sought to raise funds for the families of victims, who claimed the bodies of their loved ones from Phnom Penh hospitals on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Among those dead were at least 29 garment factory workers under the Cambodian Confederation of Unions, the president, Ath Thun, said. Another 20 from the union were wounded.

“This is not the final figure, as some workers have not returned from their home break,” he said. “We share our condolences to our members’ families and countrymen.”

At the same time orders have been issued to mark religious ceremony for the dead.

“The Ministry of Cults and Religion has issued our appeal to all our provincial departments and head monks of all the temples to organize religious ceremonies on the 7th day to dedicate all the merits to the dead," Minister of Cults and Religion Min Khin told VOA on the phone on Tuesday.