The year 2015, although in its infancy, has already proven painful for Chinese people, especially in Shanghai, where a stampede during New Year's Eve festivities left 36 dead and 47 injured.

There's still no official explanation of the cause of the deadly stampede. Some blamed the local government for underestimating the need for emergency precautions and lack of preparations. More likely, there were just too many people on the scene who rushed to watch a free laser light show to celebrate the New Year.

When such tragedies occur, the scenario is often depressingly similar - too large a crowd gathered for a big event. In February 2004, a stampede in Beijing's Miyun county killed 37 people who were attracted to a local lantern show.

China does have the world's largest population and it is easy for events to draw large crowds, especially in metropolises. In the past decades, China has witnessed the fastest urbanization and greatest expansion of population in urban areas. When there is a tragic incident, people are more likely to point their fingers at the migrant population who they think have squeezed the living space of the locals.

On China's social networks, there has already been discussion over whether there are too many non-locals in the city and that this led to the New Year's Eve tragedy, and whether Shanghai should ban outsiders.

Such opinions disappointingly show that when people enjoy the conveniences and better standards of living in cities, they are reluctant to bear the costs brought by the expansion in urban population.

A city cannot develop without new blood. When the local labor force cannot meet the demands of a fast-growing society, migrant workers are bound to be attracted to the place so that its smooth functioning can be ensured.

According to research done by professors from Shanghai's Fudan University last year, the more open a country is, the more rapidly the population of its first-tier cities will grow. China's rising urbanization rate and increasing economic opening have contributed to the growing population in Shanghai. Therefore, such growth adheres to the development principle of Chinese cities.

A maturely developed city should be able to bring in people with various backgrounds and people should be free to enjoy its facilities and attend events provided by the city. In the melting pot of New York, people from all over the world gathered in Times Square to celebrate the New Year, and no one would think to ask how many immigrants were there.

The stampede in Shanghai has exposed problems such as city management and emergency responses yet to be tackled. The debate over locals and outsiders should not divert our attention from the real issues.