Authorities must enforce the law and protect migrant workers' rights

THE TRAGEDY IN XI'AN, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, in which a migrant worker died on Jan 13 trying to get the pay he was owed has once again drawn attention to the problem of migrant workers asking for wages overdue. People.com.cn said on Tuesday:

According to the Xi'an public security bureau's official micro blog, Li Jiafu, a 37-year-old migrant worker from Sichuan province, came to the construction site where he worked with his wife and other co-workers to ask for the wages he was owed by the contractor. After they failed to reach a consensus, the contractor Lv got in his car to drive away. When Li grabbed the handle of the car door to stop him, Lv reportedly started driving, dragging Li along the ground. Li later died in hospital. Lv has been detained and the incident is being investigated.

This tragedy should not only remind migrant workers to defend their rights and interests in a proper way for their own safety, but prompt governments at all levels to guarantee migrant workers' legal rights and interests.