Shanghai should not call off public events

THE SHANGHAI AUTHORITY SAID on Sunday it was canceling its famed Lunar New Year Lantern Festival at Yuyuan Garden and a job fair in the wake of the stampede on the Bund on Dec 31 that left 36 people dead. Comments:

If Shanghai has really canceled its three traditional lantern shows just for safety reasons, it would be a big disappointment for residents, and shame for the government. The Yuyuan Park Lantern Festival is a national intangible cultural heritage, and it has been staged for 20 years. It is part of the collective memory of Shanghai residents. If the authority has canceled the activity because it fears another stampede, it is giving up eating for fear of choking.

Zhang Jifeng, a Shanghai resident, Jan 11.