Fears over returning buried alive baby to parents
Print Edition
A BABY with birth defects who was abandoned by his parents but miraculously survived will be discharged from hospital at the weekend, but where he will go worries many Chinese.
On April 20, a young mother from a village in Tiandong County in the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region gave birth to a boy with a cleft lip. Persuaded by relatives, the parents agreed to abandon the baby.
Their relatives paid a man 1,800 yuan (US$290) to 鈥渄eal with鈥 the baby. The man placed the child in a cardboard box and left the box on a hill near the village.
Two days later, the man returned and, believing the child to be dead, buried him in a nearby cemetery. After another eight days, the infant was found alive by a woman picking herbs after she heard his cries from underground.
鈥淚t was a miracle that the infant could survive,鈥 said Wu Weili, a doctor with the People鈥檚 Hospital in Tiandong. 鈥淚t is almost impossible for an adult to survive in the wilderness for 10 days without food and water.鈥
Wu said the baby was in a critical condition when he was brought to hospital. His mouth was full of mud and he had bruises on his face, the back of his hands and feet, Wu said.
When reporters saw the baby on Wednesday at hospital, he was moving his limbs vigorously and was able to take milk.
Police said five people, including the boy鈥檚 grandmothers, have been detained on suspicion of attempted murder.
His parents are out on bail over alleged baby abandonment. Investigations are continuing.
A nurse told reporters that the baby鈥檚 mother and grandfather came to the hospital for the first time on Tuesday afternoon.
鈥淭he mother was choked with sobs when she saw the baby,鈥 the nurse said, adding that the parents wrote a letter of apology in which they promised not to hurt the boy and wanted to bring him home.
This case is very special, said Zhou Liying, head of the county鈥檚 civil affairs bureau. No decision on the case has yet been made by authorities. There has been speculation that they will send the child to a welfare institution for the time being.
鈥淲e worry that the baby鈥檚 parents may hurt him again. Even though they may not, this tragedy may haunt the family and affect the boy鈥檚 mental health,鈥 Zhou said.
Infant abandonments are not rare in China, especially if babies have defects and the family cannot afford medical care.
鈥淏ut I can鈥檛 believe parents can abandon their own babies. Cleft lip and palate are treatable and many public interest organizations provide funds for those kids,鈥 doctor Wu said.
Wu said the Chinese Red Cross Foundation and Smile Angel Foundation have taken notice and may provide help.
A Guangxi hospital has offered to operate when the child is 3 months old and weighs more than 6 kilograms.
In order to reduce such tragedies in future, Wu suggested women of childbearing age go through pre-pregnancy checks and prenatal screening tests.
Some web users called on parents to respect their children鈥檚 life once they give life to them.
鈥淭he boy was strong enough to survive and I believe he will be strong enough to face his parents and this world in the future,鈥 a user with the tag 鈥淵angzhengfeng鈥 wrote.
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