‘I DIDN’T LOOK AFTER MY CHILD’

Posted: Thursday, April 16, 2009 4:14 PM
Filed Under: Beijing, China

BEIJING – Last September, less than a month after the end of the Beijing Summer Olympics, about 40 parents materialized in front of the Bird's Nest stadium. Somber and silent, they stood in a row; each one carried a large poster with photographs of their missing young children.

"Doesn’t this society have a responsibility? Why let these parents suffer?" a young college student who appeared to be the parents’ spokesman shouted out to the gathering crowd of onlookers. "Our Chinese government could do something as big as the Olympics, but they cannot find these kids?  Why not?"

Adrienne Mong/NBC News

Parents publicize the plight of their missing children in Beijing.

One of those parents was Peng Gaofeng, a handsome 30-year-old from originally from Hubei province in central China. His poster bore photographs of his son, Peng Wen Le – nicknamed Le Le. 

"My son was taken away by a [child] smuggler so ruthlessly," said Peng. He had come to the Chinese capital with the other parents in the vain hope that they could gain an audience with Premier Wen Jiabao. They had heard that, months earlier, Wen had ordered an investigation into a case of eight children who had disappeared from Henan province, and a week later they were found.

"We thought if [Wen] knew…if we could see him, he would help us and know how much we suffer," Peng recalled.

Instead he and the other parents were rounded up by the authorities, detained for a couple of days, and sent back to their home provinces. 

Eight months later, Peng is still searching for his son.

VIDEO: Buying boys in China

Photo courtesy of Peng Gaofeng and Xiong Yini

Xiong Yini with her son, Le Le, before he disappeared.

But their new life came to a standstill when Le Le, then 3-years-old, was taken from the square in front of their home one evening in March of last year. Security cameras from surrounding buildings show an unidentified man picking up the little boy and carrying him off across the street, away from his parents and his home.

Le Le is one of thousands of children who go missing in China every year. Law enforcement authorities say they don’t keep track of the numbers, and independent researchers say they can only go by the number of children recovered to guess at the scale of the problem.

"In 2006, 1,500 children were found. The real figure of missing children is unknown," said Professor Pi Yijun, who teaches at the China University of Political Science and Law.

Statistics in local media reports vary wildly, with some estimating as many as a quarter million children disappearing every year in China. But in a country with such a large population, even the most conservative approximation still sounds high – 20,000 children a year.

"Smuggling women and children is a very serious social problem, a problem all of us hate to see," said Wang Dawei, a professor of crime studies at the China People’s Public Security University. "But this is not just China’s problem."

Wang has a point. Like other countries that have human trafficking, some of the children in China are forced into labor. Two years ago, the country was rocked by a series of scandals involving hundreds of adults and children as young as 8 years old forced into slave labor at mostly illegal brick kilns in the north-central provinces of Shanxi and Henan.  
 
But child smuggling in China does have a unique dimension. 

Adrienne Mong/NBC News

Parents try to draw attention to their plight outside the Bird's Nest stadium.

"So much so that boys sell for twice the price of girls. The average price for boys, said Pi, starts at 500 yuan ($73) but can climb up to several thousand dollars by the time the child has been traded by several tiers of middlemen.

The crimes appear to be confined mostly to the countryside, according to law enforcement officials, where cultural values are still conservative, espousing a preference for males. But the trend of buying boys is also exacerbated by China’s strict family planning policy, which limits couples to having only one child in most instances.

"A lot of people can only have one child, but they want to keep the family name going," said Liu Xiaoyuan, a lawyer. "When they have a girl, they still want a boy. But they can’t have another.  So they just buy [a boy]."

So authorities have begun cracking down on buyers. "Not only do we strike the smugglers [and the middlemen], now we strike customers," said Pi. "This is a good change, and I think it will help curb the crime." 

Officials have also tried to enforce the strict monitoring of children being registered (China has a rigorous household registration system) and urged people to be vigilant. "If someone suddenly gets a new child, neighbors should report it to the police and have it checked out. Did the child come legally?" Liu suggested people ask.

Wang, the crime studies professor, pointed out that there is a lot more information about the issue now. "We do a lot of publicity to educate parents on how to protect their children," he said, "and how to look for them once they are lost."

In fact, the Ministry of Public Security recently announced a national campaign to crack down on human trafficking that would last from April to December. No other details were given.  

"I’ve been living this life of looking for my son," he told us during a recent visit to Guangzhou, where he was giving a talk about child smuggling. He has organized an informal group of parents of missing children and helps run a Web site on the subject called "Baby Come Home." 

When we last spoke to him, he had just returned from a town in Fujian province, where someone claimed to have seen a little boy that resembled Le Le.  "He was very specific about the location," said Peng, who regularly receives tips and has learned to try to distinguish between real and fake leads.  "You have to prepare yourself."

Peng is so often on the road, chasing leads on his son that he and his wife have thought about closing up their business and moving home. But "our son has a memory of this place," she said, clutching a photo album full of pictures of Le Le.

"I really liked looking at this album. Now I don’t dare," Xiong continued. "The biggest responsibility as a parent is to look after the child, but I failed… I didn’t look after my child."

Comments

Great story.  I never knew that this was such a huge problem.

Kathleen, Portsmouth, VA (Sent Thursday, April 16, 2009 9:10 PM)

Stories like this do help us understand the complexity of cultures where this problem is prevalent.  We tend to concentrate only of the political and economic aspect of China, but there is so much more to learn about the social dynamics of this huge nation of people.

The child slavery issue needs to be dealt with around the world.  Let's hope that in nations where it is a growing problem, leadership will see it as the serious problem that it is and will put strict laws into place to prevent child slavery and abuse from happening.

els (Sent Thursday, April 16, 2009 9:18 PM)

China's one-child policy has resulted in numerous legal and social problems.  Female babies are killed because the family hoped for a boy.  The statistical difference between the number of available women for men of marrying age is cause for alarm...there aren't enough women to go around anymore.  Will these women then be sold to the highest bidder like their male infant counterparts?  The trafficking of women is also a huge problem in China.  The Chinese government's lack of real concern in stopping the illegal theft and sale of baby boys is disgusting.  I've seen news stories on families such as were described in the article and it's heart breaking to know that most of these missing children will never be back with their parents.  I don't know how the "baby brokers" who are in reality immoral pirates, can even live with themselves.  I'm not even going to begin to address the disturbing $73 fee that may be paid to a mother for her baby.  That's the price of an average dinner for two (no wine even!) in America.  I have no idea what $73 could mean to an impoverished woman in China but it breaks my heart to know someone would accept it let alone pay it.  But the crux of the article wasn't babies being sold by their mothers, it was babies being STOLEN from them.  And that the country's lack of enforcement allows these kidnapping scums to continue in their trade goes against everything that truly civilized people hold dear.  The sanctity of family is outweighed by the government's ability to control the most biological need that exists in humans...the desire for children.  Good to know that the government will crack down on the trafficking of women and children between now and December this year.  Hmmmm, what happens come January, 2010?  Business as usual, I'd bet.  

Debbi Bakke, Covina, CA (Sent Thursday, April 16, 2009 9:43 PM)

China should start to help these families find their children and worry less about the pollitics of the matter. They know who's taking these kids and they need to start to track them down.

Lisa, Bremerton WA (Sent Thursday, April 16, 2009 10:50 PM)

my heart breaks for these families.  Prayers for safe return for all the children.

Margaret Stutzman Washington, MS (Sent Thursday, April 16, 2009 11:37 PM)

It is so sad that families have to go thru a tragedy such as this.  My heart goes out to these families and the children that have been taken away from them.  More needs to be done worldwide to STOP this!!

Toni, Lancaster, CA (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 12:02 AM)

Xiong, it isn't your fault.  Just as it isn't your fault when someone steals your cellphone. The problem isn't the victim, but the thief.  

And Shenzhen is ripe with thieves, all condoned by the local government.  Why do I say that?  Because if you travel to Hua Qiang Bei (SZ's second biggest shopping district) you'll be approached by literally dozens of people offering you stolen laptops and cellphones.  In a society as tightly controlled as China, this could easily be stopped.

As for Shenzhen's people, well, most simply don't care about you, or your son.  I truly wish that it weren't so, but it is. I say this as an American who has spent the past six years living in Shenzhen.  And please don't get me wrong, there are good people in Shenzhen - they are just the minority.  Also, the local government gets many things right.  Still, until the majority of the people (that is, until the culture changes to where people actually care about each other - even if it is only 'enlightened self-interest'), China will continue to be plagued by these types of atrocities. http://ruzikejiao.com/index.php/2009/04/17/most-shenzhen-people-dont-care/

Dean A. Nash, Shenzhen, China (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 12:21 AM)

It seems that parents are too busy to take the time to watch their children while they play outside.  Then they are shocked when their child goes missing.  My daughter understands that if mom or dad cannot go out with her, that she can patiently wait until we can.  She does not suffer if she has to wait a few minutes and does not have freedom to roam the neighborhood without supervision.  And it is not always thrilling to sit outside when I have a million things to do inside, but I willingly do it because it is MY responsibility to watch over and protect her.  I cannot assume that my neighbors and strangers will watch over and protect her. My mom has talked about the days when she and her siblings could roam the farm all day in the summertime and Grandma didn't have to worry for their safety. It is sad.  But those days are over. Yes.  It can happen to anyone, but it is less likely to happen if you are vigilant and watchful.

T. Bergstrom, HI (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 12:44 AM)

Wait... I though China was the new economic power in the world, and that China thinks it should be the model of Government for the planet's future... this can't be a true story!  

Sadden American (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 1:17 AM)

Adrienne.

this is a stroy that has been gaining more recognition, as it should, however I am curious why you have chosen to focus on the theft of boys vs. girls when kidnappings of women are clearly a much larger problem.

It is an issue I have covered on several posts at Crossroads, and encourage you to research for future posts.
1) http://china-crossroads.com/2008/04/18/chinas-stolen-children/
2) http://china-crossroads.com/2009/03/04/the-plight-of-chinas-xiaojies/

r
www.china-crossroads.com

Crossroads, Shanghai (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 1:24 AM)

I don't understand how the 1-Child policy has to do with this. If someone is going to break the law and kidnap a child, why don't they just break the law and have another baby. I'm sure hiding a belly for 9 months can't be much harder than hiding a second child for 18 years.

Given the US rate of missing kids from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (missingkids.com), these chinese kids are orders of magnitudes safer from kidnapping than their American counterparts.

John Doe, Seattle, Wash. (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 1:45 AM)

I am deeply touched by this article . I hope that we will come toguether as a community to further advocate on behalf of those parents , so maybe our approach will mobilize the authorities in china to look those children. This is terribly painful. My heart and thoughts go out those those parents and I thank MSNBC for this article.  

Flavia, CA (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 2:06 AM)

Child kidnapping is happening everywhere all over the world, but the main reason for this has not been told, please stop this kidnapping and help the parents of this children have peace by bring out their kidnapped children.

Is too callous to be doing children trafficking in this 21st century.

Please change this attitude.

Herbert Onyenokporo, Port harcourt, Nigeria (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 2:19 AM)

chinese govement do too little to solve this problem, we are parents we could understand what the feeling the lost kids parent, really god can help them to find back their kids if the govement could do nothing

victor , peking, china (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 3:13 AM)

Tragic,
Fot those parents whose kid died in accident (or earthquack) or has been kidnapped and after one year polish give the report in writting that now they are closing the case and no longer will able to retrive the stolen kid, should be allow to get another child.

Manrock (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 3:34 AM)

How heart breaking -it must be like looking for a needle in a haystack especially with no legal help.

rhonda clegg dallastown pa (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 4:44 AM)

I hope that God bring Le Le home. I really don't understand why people take other people kids. I pray that the family stay Strong and continue to keep looking.

Cora Alexander,Detroit,Michigan (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 6:45 AM)

Considering how expedient the Chinese government is about executing people, they should make that the punishment for this crime. Steal or buy a child, and get caught, you die.

Anonymous, NH (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 7:02 AM)

My wife and I would appreciate it if you would publish more positive news stories about China.  Life in China is not bad at all.  The barrage of negative stories from MSNBC and other sources may give readers who have never been to China the wrong impression of what the country is like.  Further, the incessant negativity will only foster prejudice over time.

Dr. James Shaw, Westmont, IL (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 7:55 AM)

They are then most likely given to Americans to adopt.

Andrea K., Miami, Fl (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 7:58 AM)

Obama will go over there and TELL them what to do, then bow down and ask forgiveness for America and all the evil we have been responsibile for. Actually, this ain't an american problem...let China take care of it.

Al (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 8:03 AM)

informative

joe (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 8:24 AM)

The creator of "Baby Come Home" should add information in English.  Some of these children could have been taken overseas to countries like America.  Americans love to adopt Chinese children, but may do so not realizing that the child has actually been stolen from their parents.

This is a heartbreaking story.  I can't imagine losing a child like this.

Julie Hicks, Chester, VA (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 8:38 AM)

A child cannot be watched every second and it's a shame on humankind that people commit such awful crimes. I will pray for you to find your son. Good luck.

Rae, Brunswick, ME (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 8:57 AM)

This is totally insane, if simply from the point of logic. If a couple is mainly concerned for carrying on "their blood line", buying a male child does nothing to satisfy their desire. But, then again, I have never understood the Chinese mentality.

If a stolen child has been adopted by an American couple, it would be necessary to have a Chinese official involved, because proper birth records must be produced. Those birth records are kept as manual records in a bound book, so an official must have created a false entry in a book in the correct chronological order of the book. This is very difficult to accomplish in a country, where most records are kept in the manual fashion, as is customary in rural areas of China. But, even if the records were created in an automated system, a government official must be involved.

Merrill, Las Vegas NV (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 9:17 AM)

This can happen anywhere, but it can get worse in China, a place where the population is exploding (thus the human value becomes lessened) plus the country - after so long being under cruel Communist rule - has abandoned many religious beliefs which serve as natural moral foundation for the human being. People there are brainwashed and lived like robot. Look at how the Chinese government (and some Chineses) have destroyed the Tibetan cultural treasure. Look at how they treat Christian or whoever dares to cling to the Bible ... They have endangered environment by running their businesses in a very irresponsibly methodology.

Dat Pham, San Antonio, Texas (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 9:20 AM)

It is sad to see how many of us fall for such propaganda.  The problem China has is nothing worse then any country in the world, including us here in the US of A.  I only see one reason for this article in American media, propaganda.  Make Chinese look bad so people don't pay attention to all the problems we have here at home.  Has anyone ever gone to Down Town LA, Chicago, NY, Detroit, and many more.  In some parts of the city, you will be lucky to come out alive after dark.  Stop trying to make them look bad and take care of the problems at home.

sid green (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 9:24 AM)

Being the third generation to a Chinese immigrant; this problem of child kidnapping and child selling hits to close to home. Being female; I know that I am lucky my Great Grand Father made the decision to to come to American. Had he not; I would have been sold being an undesired female.
As for the 1 Child Law; becuase the ration is approximately 10 males to 1 female; (not sure of the new stats) the law for the most has been over turned.
Yes we have a problem here in American with child kidnappings; but the scale to which it happens here; is nothing compared to the scale it happens in China and other Asian countries.

3rd Generation, Migrant, America (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 9:33 AM)

This is such a shame... poor thing- she feels so guilt, as I am sure most of us would, but I don't think there was anything differently she could have done.  My prayers are with her.  

Single Mom, New Orleans, Louisiana (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 9:45 AM)

Oh my God! those people that do that to children anywhere around the world should be given to the sharps like snachk.

Victor Vergez, New York City, New York (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:01 AM)

This is very sad. I don't know what I would do if one of my kids got kidnapped like this. All I know is some ugly side of me that I never know before might all of a sudden appear and take over, and I don't want that to happen. This is not just a China problem, it's a world problem and we should all lend a hand.

Mike, Kansas City, MO (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:02 AM)

This is something that is happening all across the world. Human trafficking is big business especially when it comes to the transnational element. In Africa, children are sold for a fish. In India, children are forced into brothels, same with Asian countries as the demand for young children to perform sexual acts is high.  Exploitation takes many forms, not just against children but women and men as well. Victims are exploited for purposes of labor, sexual exploitation, debt bondage, body parts and human sacrifice. All across both poor and developing nations does this problem exist. And it IS America's problem as many of these victims end up in the United States in positions of forced labor and prostitution. Why? Our citizens have the money to pay for these services. Traffickers know the routes to take to abduct or coerce a victim out of their home country and use the same routes as narcotics traffickers and terrorists. Human trafficking is a multi billion dollar business which in turn funds other crimes against persons. The US population doesn't know enough about this, we need to educate people on prevention, protection and prosecution efforts to stop this horrible crime.

SR, CT (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:13 AM)

I am Chinese .
I am very shock when I see this topic.When I have read the content I feel my sisters'children are in danger ,I want to tell they protect them well.
Our government must pay attention on this problem.
But I thind this is hopeless for the government have so many things to do.
Human rights is useless in China ........

J China (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:17 AM)

Nothing can be worse than to see your child taken from his family.
But as for the moralizing, remember that the US is the country in which unborn infants are legally murdered by their mothers in the millions.
Their is an underlying attitude of what I want is all that is important, that rides roughshod over the deeper values of a humble respect for life.

Bill Smith (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:21 AM)

Wait a minute - they don't keep track of the numbers of missing children? It seems impossible to me that a country capable of monitoring and enforcing the number of offspring produced by any one set of parents - so much so that couples are willing to purchase boys in the first place - does not keep track of the number of missing children. It also seems impossible that the government has no idea where these children end up or any way to figure it out.

M.R.S. (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:23 AM)

These children are not being ADOPTED by Americans living in the United States.  China and the United States have VERY strict policies about international adoption.  Literally dozens of legal transactions need to happen on BOTH sides of the ocean for children to be adopted by American citizens.  I can't vouch for other countries, however and child trafficking is clearly a HUGE problem worldwide.  As is child abduction even in the good old United States of America.

Ahn Wi, Chicago, IL (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:34 AM)

It breaks my heart to see that picture...

Mabell Flores, Miami, Florida (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:34 AM)

How awful. As the parent of a nearly 3 yo boy, I can't imagine the grief these parents are going through. I pray Le Le is at least adopted by a family that wanted a boy. Then he is being loved whereever he is.

Anonymus, Lexington, KY (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:37 AM)

Its government fault, chinese government. They only know to show off their corrupt money.

za, houston, tx (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:38 AM)

Why appeal to the United states for a Chinese problem? Expanding those that should be concerned to include another country, when admittedly these children are not being trafficed in foreign countries does not seem to be an effective strategy.

If there were some proof that these children were being sold as sex slaves overseas, it might be more relevent.

I too have had experience living in China as well as several other Asian countries. The feeling I had is every man for himself. The sense of community is strained and superficial if present at all. My personal dealings with Chinese on a one to one basis has be positive, warm and generally open - on the surface. But as evidenced by the easy in how quicky these "child stealers" disappear once the child is abducted, not to mention how efficeint they are in locating, targeting their victims - seems to indicate that there is a market for information on possible victims as much as there is market for the stolen child.

As noted by several posters, this could not occur nor continue as a "business model" without the complicity of authorities. As cold blooded as it sounds, you must admit that fixing this issue, painfull as it is, is a Chinese problem

Zenner, San Jose, Ca (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:39 AM)

The Chinese government's only priority is hold on to their power. The story like this is too common in China and the government has least interest in doing anything.  Beneath all the beautiful images of Beijing and Shanghai lies a billions of tragedy stories.  

Sonam Zoksang, Kingston, New York (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:43 AM)

I do feel sorry for the families. I also think that the parents should be more responsible for their children. You should not let a 3 year old child play alone when you know there is a problem in the society.

Lisa Wang (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:43 AM)

To take the child of another person is an act beyond comprehension.  Buyers and sellers of human beings show how little real progress has been made by mankind.  Graft and corruption limit China more than any other aspect of that culture. 5,000 years has only honed the baldes of corruption in China. I hope each child will be returned.  

richard norfolk, virginia (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:50 AM)

I was apalled to learn of such a horrible problem in China regarding these children.  I am a adoptive parent from the US and I do not believe that any adoptive parent knowingly would adopt a child under those circumstances.  A childs life is so precious please take care of your children.

Lauren, stoughton, MA (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:51 AM)

What a tragic situation for all those poor parents.  It is just another horrible example of what the desire for money will make people do.

Liz Justis (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:53 AM)

makes me sick to my stomach...

Carrie, Savannah, GA (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:53 AM)

in all asmuch noise of gender equality, boys still commands family attention and many prefer having both sexes. He will be there for good or bad when girls; all long gone even traded or changed the family name as society required when married! The last home of any respected woman in the society is her husband home, anything less than that she's as good as the street lady of the night.

wung lee (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:54 AM)

Child kidnapping isn't limited soley to China. A child is trafficked WORLDWIDE every TWO MINUTES. It's about time people open up their eyes and realize we've got an issue that needs to be dealt with. It's complex, you have to not only dig at other government's laws, but you have to reconfigure the way the culture as a whole values their children. After spending more than a month working at a shelter for trafficked women and children in Cambodia, I can honestly say that this problem is much more complex than any research shows and doesn't have an easy solution. How can you get involved? Become aware: NotForSaleCampaign.org.

I am not for sale. You are not for sale. Nobody should ever be for sale.

A. W., Boise, ID (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 10:56 AM)

Remember: The Chinese are our friends. (ha,ha)

Mai Dong Izbeeg, San Franciso, California (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 11:01 AM)

Al,Bush and the republicans would be tough on China? Its crazy we have an embargo on Cuba, but China no way.

vic (Sent Friday, April 17, 2009 11:04 AM)

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