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Father's plight in search of son trapped in slavery
By Zhang Xuanchen |
December 29, 2010, Wednesday
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Online Edition
Online Edition
A FARMER aged 62 who helped a brick kiln slave worker to reunite with his family is still looking for his own mentally-retarded son, who was lured to work six months ago and never came back.
Frustrated by police's refusal to handle his case due to lack of evidence, the father has decided to find his boy on his own, who he believed was being trapped in kiln, mine or factory somewhere.
Every morning, the white-haired He Zhimin sets off from home on a three-wheeled motorcycle, carrying an eye-catching signboard with his son's profile and picture, as he scouts around Sanyuan County in Shaanxi Province.
Sometimes he travels to the neighboring Gaoling County where coal mining is prevalent, hoping his son would appear among the dark-faced miners off work.
He told China Youth Daily that his 35-year-old son, He Wen, went missing on June 2. He's nephew said that He Wen left home on a bike after answering a call from an unknown woman. He overheard in the phone that the woman offered him a job and a daily pay of 70 yuan (US$10.57) plus a pack of cigarettes.
The family received a phone call from He Wen, saying he was offered a well-paid part-time job on the same day. After that, they lost contact with him and began their desperate search.
The father has searched around the county the whole summer, asking everyone about his son's whereabouts. He printed thousands of flyers and cards with his son's description for distribution to passers-by.
He described his boy as being full of life and friendly, though suffering some mental problems.
The unsavory episode came when He Zhimin received a tip from a driver who said he saw his son sleeping on the street on December 18. But when he rushed there, he discovered the dusty man was just a co-worker of his son.
The man, Liu Xiaoping, said he and He Wen were kept captive in a brick kiln to work for a boss, identified by his surname Fang. Liu forgot how he had escaped but remembered his promise to contact He Wen's family if there is a chance.
Liu, 29, said he was tempted by a woman to work in kilns in Gaoling County for 500 yuan a month. But he was trapped and tortured by the boss, who burnt the workers with hot bricks and didn't provide enough food.
He and Gaoling police helped Liu reunite with his family on December 19. But his son was not in the kiln where Liu said they worked before, putting damper on He's rekindled hope.
He continued his search and fought the idea that his son might have been tortured to death. "It's my fault," he would say after another day of fruitless search.
But the exhausted father still clings to hope and says he will cook his son's favorite meal upon his return and will teach him to grow vegetables and find him a wife. "I will never let him go," he said with resolve.
He has reported the missing of his son to local police several times, but was only told that they cannot take action due to lack of evidence, China Youth Daily reported.
Frustrated by police's refusal to handle his case due to lack of evidence, the father has decided to find his boy on his own, who he believed was being trapped in kiln, mine or factory somewhere.
Every morning, the white-haired He Zhimin sets off from home on a three-wheeled motorcycle, carrying an eye-catching signboard with his son's profile and picture, as he scouts around Sanyuan County in Shaanxi Province.
Sometimes he travels to the neighboring Gaoling County where coal mining is prevalent, hoping his son would appear among the dark-faced miners off work.
He told China Youth Daily that his 35-year-old son, He Wen, went missing on June 2. He's nephew said that He Wen left home on a bike after answering a call from an unknown woman. He overheard in the phone that the woman offered him a job and a daily pay of 70 yuan (US$10.57) plus a pack of cigarettes.
The family received a phone call from He Wen, saying he was offered a well-paid part-time job on the same day. After that, they lost contact with him and began their desperate search.
The father has searched around the county the whole summer, asking everyone about his son's whereabouts. He printed thousands of flyers and cards with his son's description for distribution to passers-by.
He described his boy as being full of life and friendly, though suffering some mental problems.
The unsavory episode came when He Zhimin received a tip from a driver who said he saw his son sleeping on the street on December 18. But when he rushed there, he discovered the dusty man was just a co-worker of his son.
The man, Liu Xiaoping, said he and He Wen were kept captive in a brick kiln to work for a boss, identified by his surname Fang. Liu forgot how he had escaped but remembered his promise to contact He Wen's family if there is a chance.
Liu, 29, said he was tempted by a woman to work in kilns in Gaoling County for 500 yuan a month. But he was trapped and tortured by the boss, who burnt the workers with hot bricks and didn't provide enough food.
He and Gaoling police helped Liu reunite with his family on December 19. But his son was not in the kiln where Liu said they worked before, putting damper on He's rekindled hope.
He continued his search and fought the idea that his son might have been tortured to death. "It's my fault," he would say after another day of fruitless search.
But the exhausted father still clings to hope and says he will cook his son's favorite meal upon his return and will teach him to grow vegetables and find him a wife. "I will never let him go," he said with resolve.
He has reported the missing of his son to local police several times, but was only told that they cannot take action due to lack of evidence, China Youth Daily reported.
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