China punishes 11 for dereliction of duty after deadly bus fire

The government of the northern Chinese region of Ningxia has punished 11 officials for dereliction of duty after a deadly bus fire last year killed 18 people in the regional capital Yinchuan. The man blamed for starting the fire, Ma Yongping, was executed in December. In a statement late on Saturday carried by the ruling Communist Party's anti-corruption watchdog, the Ningxia government said the fire exposed a lack of concern and lack of sense of responsibility by certain officials.