Theme park built on ruins of Chinese earthquake

BEIJING. February 18. KAZINFORM A theme park has been built on the ruins of China's earthquake in the southwestern Sichuan province where thousands of people died in May last year, the China Daily said on Wednesday.

The 6.6-hectare entertainment park is located in Pengzhou and is a perfect space for tactical games like paintball. The construction has been inspired by a military-based video game Counter Strike (CS), Kazinform cites RIA Novosti. "The CS park is built on what was once the Peony Garden, where the springs were blocked and pavilion destroyed in the May 12 earthquake. And the natural setting of grass, beach and obstacles are very suitable for field warfare," said Dai Jun, the general manager of the Chinese construction firm Baoshan Group. The idea to build the theme park in the disaster area has caused a wave of protest among Chinese Internet users. "How would the Americans react if someone built an amusement park on Ground Zero?" an Internet user asked. Meanwhile, an Internet poll on Sina.com showed only 29% of respondents opposed the construction, while 64% were in favor of the idea. Some 6,624 people took part in the survey. The May 12 earthquake in Sichuan, the most powerful to hit the region in thirty years, killed at least 70,000 people and displaced 10 million. Another 18,000 people are still missing. Direct economic losses from the quake have exceeded $150 billion.