The lantern festival will disappear from Shanghai this year.

The Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administration announced earlier this month that the annual lantern festival celebrations at Yuyuan Garden, Guyi Garden and other parks around the city have been canceled, according to local media.

The authorities in Shanghai decided to cancel the celebrations, which usually mark the end of the Spring Festival holiday, as an "emergency response" to the deadly stampede that occurred on the Bund on New Year's Eve, which left 36 people dead.

I can imagine that celebrations that draw millions of people every year to specific spots in the city seem like a risky proposition to a local government determined to have a Chinese New Year free of tragedy. In 2013, as many as 1.5 million people visited the 5-acre Yuyuan Garden for the three-day lantern fair.

The logic of decision is simple: if there are no lantern festival celebrations, there will be no crowds, and therefore no chance of injuries or deaths. Everyone will be safe.

Unfortunately, this is the laziest way of ensuring everyone is safe. With local officials, including Shanghai Party Chief Han Zheng, claiming that they have "learned a lesson" from the tragic stampede, it is disappointing to realize that the lesson they learned was to exterminate large events, rather than improve how they are managed.

I object to the cancelations, which were made by a government that seems more interested in avoiding responsibility than making progress.

If the government sticks to the idea that the only way to ensure public safety is to cancel large events, last year's New Year's Eve celebration will end up the last large event held in Shanghai. I wonder if that really looks good to the authorities - a tragedy occurs, which then puts an end to the city's tradition of festive celebrations.

Canceling the lantern festival celebration is not a sincere or well-thought-out measure to prevent tragedies. Instead it turns a blind eye to their root causes.

I could not be more disturbed by the inherent nonchalance for the victims and their families and the rest of Shanghai citizens, who deserve carefully organized and controlled events, not an unnecessary cancelation disguised as a timely solution.

Chinese people, who have been known for their forbearance, be it real or not, are sometimes good at finding fault among themselves. For example, after the stampede, many voiced understanding for the government. They believed the government had already done the best it could do. They pointed out that wise residents chose to avoid the crowds and stay home on New Year's Eve, as if the victims somehow deserved their fate.

I do not know if the authorities secretly share this idea, but I hope that is the last thing on their minds. I believe everyone has a right to celebrate, and to celebrate in large groups. The government is not at the right position to take that right away, which is what they are doing by cancelation.

The government would be better off working harder to create a safe environment for them to celebrate in. For instance, it could start by putting a reasonable limit on how many people can gather in a specific place. If this is strictly implemented, it will provide those who attend these events with a safer and more agreeable experience.

It is possible that this year will be the only year the government decides to cancel the lantern festival celebrations as it is still working on a comprehensive plan for managing large events. 

That would be excusable. What is inexcusable is ignoring holes in urban management that make it possible for tragedies to happen.