THANK YOU !
We are delighted to announce that the Morecambe Victims Fund has now closed because its aim has been met. All of the crippling debts inherited by the families of the victims of the Morecambe Bay Tragedy have been paid off. It remains for us to thank you all most sincerely for your kind support in coin, in kind, and with your solidarity.
Anti-Slavery
Find out what happened to the relatives of the victims by clicking on the links below:
Liu Qin Ying, 37, and Xu Yu Hua, 37
From Putian of Fujian
Liu Qin Ying was a farmer and Xu Yu Hua was a driver in Fujian. They are husband and wife, and were drowned together on the same night at Morecambe Bay. They have one son of 18 and a younger disabled daughter. Xu Yu Hua came to Britain a year before his wife. He didn't want her to follow him. But she was determined. She died on the first day when she joined her husband in cockling. Her body was never found.
Since their deaths, Xu Yu Hua's 67-year-old father, Xu Wei Heh, said in his letter to the local government in Putian: "Since he and his wife died, his son and disabled daughter have been living with me. We still have more than 100,000 RMB debt to pay. I am not able to cope on my own. I sincerely hope that the relevant departments can help with supporting the orphans, so that they can live and continue to study." There was no reply from the government. The eighteen-year-old orphan Xu Bing is now at high school. He said: "I used to have a very happy family. We never had enough money but we were happy. Now my parents are gone and I am all alone. I am lucky to have help from my aunt, uncle and grandfather. But I still have a debt of 100,000 yuan to pay off."
Xu Li Ying, elder sister of victim Xu Yu Hua, said: "We, all the families, have suffered so much since we lost our loved ones. They left to go to work in England and endured a subhuman working life, just to improve our lives at home. Their deaths have brought so much pain to all of us. And since then, we have been living in debt."
"Some of us cannot afford medical care for the elderly nor education for the young. Some parents fell ill as they lost their sons. A mother could not endure the pain of losing her son and committed suicide. Some widows had to re-marry as they were burdened by heavy debts. I often wonder, can those who died keep their eyes closed when so much misery follows their deaths?" she said.
"The authorities should bear the responsibility for the workers' safety. When miners were killed in an industrial accident, the government compensates their families - even though it is a small compensation. But the British government has shrugged away all its responsibilities. At the same time, the Chinese government does not treat its own citizens as human beings. Soon after the tragedy, the local government tried to stop people coming into our town to talk to us, because they didn't want people to see the misery we were in. Our loved ones lost their lives like dogs in a foreign land. And no one wants to compensate. In this time of desperation, your help comes as a ray of hope."
Autumn 2009
Xu Liying, sister of Xu Li Hua and sister-in-law of Liu Qin Ying, who both died in Morecambe Bay:
Xu Bin, son of Xu Li Hua and Liu Qin Ying: