Child abduction and trafficking in Mainland China is a long-standing problem. Currently, there are no official nationwide statistics on the number of missing children. However, Mainland media have reported that approximately 200,000 children have gone missing each year, averaging about 550 children disappearing every day. Nearly 80 percent of these missing children are abducted and trafficked, and the probability of them being found is only 0.1 percent.
Behind every abducted child lies a shattered family, a broken and ruined life that is unbearable to recall. Whenever desperate parents fail to find their children, they are left in a desperately helpless state, full of self-blame.
Two real-life cases
Let’s examine two real-life cases.
Li Xuemei, a mother from Heyuan City, Guangdong Province, posted a video stating that her son, Jiazhu, born in 2010, was abducted by human traffickers when he was only five years old. To date, it has been 7 years since she has been searching for her son. Recently, she was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer, with the cancer cells having spread to her brain. Her only fear is that she doesn’t have much time left and desperately wishes to see her son Jiazhu once again.
“Jiazhu, your Mom’s time is running out. The cancer has spread to my brain. I often have nosebleeds, and yesterday I even coughed up blood. As your mom, I don’t have any special requests now, just a wish to see you one last time!”
After battling her illness for over a year, Li Xuemei left a lasting wish. She hopes that everyone will help her find her child. Regretfully, at the end of July this year, after searching for her son for nine years, Li Xuemei finally passed away. According to her family, Xuemei was buried on August 23, and her final wish was that if her child were to be found in the future, they would bring him to visit her grave.
A second case involved a two-and-a-half-year-old girl who mysteriously disappeared from a village in Ruicheng County, Shanxi Province, on August 12. At noon, the little girl was playing at home and being looked after by her grandmother. The grandmother was away for about 15 minutes on an errand, and when she returned, the little girl was missing.
The family reported the incident to the police. The police dispatched police dogs and drones to conduct a thorough search. Local rescue teams also joined the search. Villagers spontaneously mobilized and searched the whole area, but failed to find the girl. By August 22, the girl had been missing for a full 10 days.
The heartbroken parents and grandmother offered a reward of 200,000 RMB (US$28,000), hoping that the public would provide clues to help find the child. They also prayed that the trafficker would have a conscience and send the child back safely. The family would still give him the 200,000 RMB and would not pursue the matter further.
Due to the high statistics and probability of children being abducted, Chinese people have no choice but to tie their children with a rope while they are busy making a living. If they do not do it this way, their children may never be found again. The helplessness and worry of mothers are truly heart-wrenching.
The methods used by traffickers
There are four major methods of abduction employed by traffickers, and some examples:
- Verbal abduction, using candy or small toys to lure children to abduct them.
- Violent abduction occurs when traffickers, upon seeing that no one is around, forcefully take the child away.
- Employee abduction, which is using female associates to infiltrate homes with children, under the guise of maids, and never returning when they take the children out to play.
- Group abduction, where traffickers instruct several children to play with their target, gradually leading them further and further away until the target is abducted.
In a community in Fujian Province, China, a suspicious man picked up a little boy, intending to take him away. At the same time, a security guard and a food delivery guy spied on both of them and tried to take the child away from the man. Ultimately, the child was rescued from the abductor.
In a violent abduction incident at a shopping mall in Zhuzhou City, Hunan Province, a man in white tried to pick up a boy to take him away. However, when the child’s mother was alerted, he quickly ran away. In his second attempt, he picked up a girl. Fortunately, the girl’s grandmother chased after him, and the man fled in panic.
In another violent abduction, a surveillance video captured a woman approaching three siblings playing by the roadside. She tried to grab the youngest girl twice, and on the third attempt, she succeeded. The older brother, realizing something was wrong, shouted at the child trafficker: “Put her down! Put her down now!” At that moment, the children’s father sensed something was wrong and ran over, prompting the woman to put the child down and go away.
Why are there so many cases of child trafficking in China?
The one-child policy is the main reason for the rampant child trafficking in China. The Chinese Communist Party implemented a one-child policy for more than 30 years, starting in 1979, meaning each couple could only have one child, regardless of the child’s gender.
In rural China, the custom of valuing sons over daughters was prevalent. If a farmer had a daughter, they believed she couldn’t carry on the family line, since it was customary for a son to inherit the family property. Some farmers illegally purchase male infants, creating a huge market for child traffickers.
Many people work in other places. They cannot take their children to school because they do not have household registration. So, they can only leave their young children in the care of grandparents or relatives. Often, due to neglect, the children are abducted by human traffickers.
Another issue is the Chinese officials’ indifference and leniency. Although the Chinese officials have claimed on various occasions that child abduction and trafficking must be severely and swiftly punished, and there must be no leniency and indulgence, these were generally empty words, as no action was ever taken.
In areas heavily involved in human trafficking, relatives and neighbors usually know who has bought a son or daughter. The local authorities never proactively investigate, but instead, they actively participate in and maintain the human trafficking network. Only when the victim’s family contacts the local police through the local authorities, or during symbolic crackdowns, will the local police be forced to “rescue” the victim.
Since the police are unwilling to assist in the search for missing children, parents of missing children must fend for themselves. Some parents have jointly set up organizations such as “Child Search Homes” to help search for missing children. This organization claims to have 700 members, mostly low-income migrant workers from Henan and Guangdong provinces.
The statistics
Did you know that approximately 2,739 people go missing every day across China, and the number of people missing reaches 1 million annually? That means two people disappear in the crowd every minute. For a country with a population of 1.4 billion people, this number may seem insignificant.
But people do not want to see a loved one suddenly disappear from their lives. According to the China Trend Population White Paper, the number of missing people in 2020 reached 1 million. Before 2020, the number of missing people was as follows:
- 2016: 3.97 million
- 2017: 2.61 million
- 2018: 1.99 million
- 2019: 1.77 million
Let us take a look at the data released on the website of China’s Ministry of Public Security on December 31, 2021. As of December that year, a total of 10,932 children who had gone missing or been abducted over the years had been found. Among them:
- 2,538 were missing for 20 to 30 years
- 1,812 were missing for 30 to 40 years
- 371 were missing for 40 to 50 years
- 190 were missing for 50 to 60 years
- 110 were missing for more than 60 years
The most extended period of separation between the missing and their families was 74 years.
On June 1, 2022, the Ministry of Public Security reported that public security organs across the country had solved 400 long-standing cases of child trafficking, arrested 1,124 suspects, and recovered 11,198 children who had gone missing or been abducted over the years.
In terms of age, children under one year old are the most vulnerable to abduction. The age group of 1-6 has a high incidence of abduction, and the number of abducted boys in this age group is much higher than that of girls. Gender-wise, boys are more targeted than girls. Kidnapped boys can usually sell for US$16,000, twice the price for girls.
From the perspective of perpetrators, 47.5 percent of children were abducted by strangers, but their biological parents sold 35.8 percent of children. The proportion of perpetrators among friends and acquaintances was 11.0 percent, and the proportion of relatives involved was 4.8 percent.
In terms of time, January is the month with the most abducted children. This is because January is close to the Chinese New Year. It is the peak period for people to return to their hometowns for the New Year. During this period, the mobility of the population intensifies, and criminals will target children at train stations, bus stations, shopping malls, and other places.
Missing teenagers
Recently, there have been many cases of missing teenagers, and scammers’ tricks are becoming increasingly sophisticated. The following reveals two standard abduction methods.
Carpool trafficking
The first type is called carpooling trafficking. While you are waiting for a train at the station, a peer suddenly approaches and starts chatting with you, asking where you are going. No matter what you say, they conveniently claim to be going the same way and enthusiastically invite you to carpool with them, saying it is cheaper and safer. You think it is a good deal, but once you get in the car, you might never come back.
Seeking-help trafficking
The second type is called seeking-help trafficking. The following are three typical examples of this.
First, you are walking down the street when a girl approaches you, saying a stranger is following her. She appears to be very scared and begs you to pretend to be her friend and walk with her. In this instance, do not be fooled and let her take you to a secluded place.
Second, you meet a pitiful old lady on the street. She tells you she has not eaten for days and asks if you could buy her some food. Feeling sorry for her, you agree. She even kindly tells you not to spend too much money, and to go to that cheap shop over there. But once you go there, you might not be able to get out. What the teacher said is true; it’s been on the news before. People have taken their children to these shops, only for them to disappear.
Third, when you are jogging or walking at night, a pretty young woman suddenly tells you she came out to walk the dog herself. While passing a very dark place, her dog ran away, and she could not find it anywhere. She asks if you can help her look for it. Seeing that she appears to be a good person, and out of the goodness of your heart, you enter the dark alley with her.
In conclusion
Remember, if you really encounter an abduction attempt, never fight back. The best way to be rescued is to seize every opportunity to attract attention, find opportunities to run, and protect yourself.
Translated by: Chua BC and edited by Maria
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