Value of 'One' life

Last week I was reading a news article on riots in a Asian country. It was about how local people claim that more than 100 people were killed by the riot police but the government claims that 'ONLY' 18 people died. I have been reading such statements since the day I started reading newspapers. However, what stuck me this time is that people are so bent upon statistics even when it comes to lives. Someone claims 100 people have died, but the government comes back to say that lesser people died - how does that matter? Even if one life is lost, it is very bad. What is the point in playing with numbers!!