China's death toll in coal mine accidents last year fell by about 6 per cent to 6,027 compared with 2003, said Liang Jiakun, deputy director of the State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS).

There were 3,639 fatal coal mine accidents last year, down by 16 per cent year-on-year.

We should not be content with this drop, either in the death toll or the number of accidents. The loss of every single life deserves our utmost concern. The figure 6,027 is still appalling.

What is more worrying is Liang's revelation that the country's key State coal mines need to fork out about 50 billion yuan (US$6 billion) on safety measures.

The estimate is based on a 2003 survey of State coal mines in 13 provinces conducted by the Ministry of Finance, the National Development and Reform Commission, and SAWS.

We used to point the finger at covetous private mine owners seeking profits at the sacrifice of miners' safety. But the two huge accidents in standard State coal mines late last year -- each claiming more than 140 lives -- crushed our blind confidence in ostensibly safe State shafts.

It has now become clear that inadequate spending on safety equipment and facilities is the major cause of the casualties.

We do not yet have an accurate picture of how much is spent on safety in the industry as a whole, but the situation in State coal mines is enough to remind us of the necessity to immediately increase spending to save more lives.

SAWS is determined to press coal producers to increase input and seek more government finance within three years.

Prompt action must be taken to improve the situation. We cannot afford to lose any more lives.

SAWS said coal producers would be ordered to improve their safety standards.

The industrial regulators need to strengthen their role to ensure adequate money is put aside for the purpose of safety.

State subsidy has been stopped since corporate reforms in the late 1980s and it is now up to the enterprises themselves to allocate capital to refurbish safety equipment.

Years of sluggish market demand for coal have seen coal companies bogged down in the red. They were financially incapable of earmarking money for safety. Wages were often their paramount concern.

Now that market demand has soared, profits are expected to grow with it. But past experience shows coal producers may cite growing costs and intensified market competition to dodge their responsibility for safety.

Better supervision alone will not cure the situation. Further corporate reform is indispensable.

After more than a decade of reform, the sector is still largely State monopolized.

Monopoly is set to brew inefficiency.

More capital and multiple ownership should be introduced to the industry to standardize management. Good management will lower operational costs and increase profits, which will in turn make companies more capable of increasing safety spending.

It will not be achieved easily. But the frequent bloody disasters require it to start soon.

(China Daily January 20, 2005)