People with missing family members take part in a charity campaign in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on June 1. LONG WEI/FOR CHINA DAILY
Footage of chained woman held in hut triggers intense discussion
A mother of eight who was confined with an iron chain around her neck has become one of the most-searched figures on Chinese social media over the past month.
Her story, which is being followed by millions of netizens, has sparked intense discussion nationwide over personal rights and the rule of law.
Video footage of the chained and mentally ill woman, wearing light clothing and being held in a dilapidated hut in Fengxian county of Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, was posted late last month and went viral online, shocking the public.
Although the county authorities were quick to say the woman was surnamed Yang, and that she married a man surnamed Dong in 1998, netizens remained doubtful, constantly questioning the woman's identity, her age, and whether she was a victim of human trafficking. They demanded help for her and called for a thorough investigation into the case.
On Wednesday, a team formed last week in Jiangsu announced the result of its investigation, confirming the woman's name as Xiaohuamei, which translates as "little plum blossom". She is 44 and comes from Yagu, a village in Yunnan province, the team said.
The team confirmed that Xiaohuamei and Dong are the biological parents of the eight children, and that she is a victim of human trafficking, which was earlier denied by the county authorities in its official statement.
According to the team's findings, Xiaohuamei spoke abnormally and acted strangely soon after ending her first marriage. She returned to Yagu from another village in Yunnan in 1997. A year later, she was trafficked to Donghai county, Jiangsu, by a woman surnamed Sang and her husband, surnamed Shi.
It is thought that Xiaohuamei was first sold to a man in Donghai for 5,000 yuan in early 1998, and that she disappeared in May that year. A couple running a restaurant in Xiayi county, Henan province, then sold her to two migrant workers one month later. Finally, the two workers brought her to Fengxian and sold her to the father of her current husband, Dong.
Volunteers collect blood samples at the Hangzhou event to conduct DNA tests to find missing family members. LONG WEI/FOR CHINA DAILY
The team said Sang and Shi were arrested for alleged human trafficking, with several others thought to be involved in the case placed under investigation. It added that Dong was arrested on suspicion of abuse, and 17 officials were also held accountable for irregularities in dealing with the case.
Xiaohuamei has schizophrenia and cannot communicate normally, the team said. Accompanied by her eldest son, she is now receiving hospital treatment in Xuzhou for mental illness and severe dental disorders. The other children and the elderly family member are being cared for by volunteers and villagers in Fengxian.
The investigation result was announced after the public security departments compared the woman's DNA with that of possible relatives. Forensic science institutions also gave her physical checks. In addition, the team examined more than 1,000 profiles and made over 4,600 visits to people in Jiangsu, Yunnan and Henan provinces who may be close to and aware of Xiaohuamei.
An official in charge of the provincial investigation team told Xinhua News Agency that a special campaign to uncover offenses in which women and children are harmed, and also to locate people with mental issues or disabilities, has been conducted throughout Jiangsu. Strong action will be taken against human traffickers and those who buy women or children that are trafficked, the official said.
He also pledged to make great efforts to protect people's rights, with the full implementation of policies and measures aimed at saving and helping victims of human trafficking.
"The abduction and trafficking of women and children seriously harms their personal rights. It's a crime that no one should tolerate and also a social scandal that must be unswervingly combated and effectively prevented," the official said.
During the campaign, 10 groups of people have been named as major targets in Xuzhou, including those with mental problems or who have been involved in the restriction of, the official said. The authorities will not hesitate to punish those who damage the rights of women and children, the official added.
The campaign has been joined by the women's federation in Jiangsu, which is focusing on aid being provided to grassroots areas. The federation called for more people, such as volunteers, to report signs of abuse and trafficking promptly, adding that education on protecting the rights of women and children should be provided in villages and other rural communities.
A man named only as Xiaojie (second right) is reunited with his parents in Shenyang, Liaoning province, in June last year, 26 years after being abducted at age 7 in his hometown of Guiyang, Guizhou province. LI HAO/FOR CHINA DAILY
Call for action
Xiaohuamei and her story have triggered heated discussion on human trafficking, with many netizens, legal experts, national legislators and policy advisers suggesting that harsher punishment be given to those who buy trafficked women and children.
Highlighting the importance of amending laws to prevent cases such as Xiaohuamei's, Zhu Zhengfu, a national adviser and a lawyer from Guangdong province, called for people from all walks of life to intensify efforts to prevent human trafficking.
He told China News Weekly that the abduction and trafficking of women and children is not treated as a serious crime in some areas. Zhu suggested that more authorities, including civil affairs bodies, lawyers' associations and charity organizations, should unite to discover potential problems in rural areas and regions where people still believe that human trafficking is not a crime.
In the past decade, the nation's resolve to prevent human trafficking has never weakened, and relentless efforts are being made to fight this crime.
Strong appeals from the public have resulted in some changes to legislation and also achievements in fighting trafficking.
Under the Ninth Amendment to the Criminal Law, which was amended in 2015, those who buy abducted individuals should be held criminally liable. The revised law took effect in November that year. Previously, such buyers escaped criminal punishment if they did not abuse trafficked women and children or interfere with attempts to rescue them.
Police have also made a significant contribution to fighting human trafficking, for example by launching campaigns and locating missing children through a DNA database.
Latest data from the Ministry of Public Security show that 10,932 missing and abducted children had been found in China by the end of last year, thanks to a system known as Reunion, which was first used in May 2016.
Photos of missing children and related information feature on bottles of water at a market in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, in July 2020. CHINA DAILY
Several social organizations and individuals have also offered assistance to people with missing family members.
They include Zhang Baoyan, who in April 2007 launched Baby Back Home, a website aimed at helping families find lost relatives.
As a deputy to the National People's Congress, the country's top legislative body, she has put forward several proposals to fight human trafficking.
"I've always paid attention to improving laws on protecting the rights of women and children. This year is no exception," Zhang said ahead of the NPC's annual session, which is scheduled to start on March 5 in Beijing.
To date, with help from the website, 8,567 missing people have been found and reunited with their families－4,312 of them children, Zhang said.
Furthermore, such crimes have declined in China in the past 10 years. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of criminal cases involving the abduction and trafficking of women and children filed for investigation by police fell to 3,305 in 2020 from 20,735 in 2013.
Xiaohuamei and her story have again highlighted the significance of nationwide efforts to combat such offenses, with academics calling for the full use of big data and for joint efforts to further safeguard people's rights and promote the rule of law.
Zhao Hong, a professor at China University of Political Science and Law, told China News Weekly: "Everyone and every department should shoulder responsibilities in the fight. If they do, similar cases will be solved and won't be repeated."
