WUNRN
CHINA PLEDGES TO SERIOUSLY PUNISH
TRAFFICKERS OF NEWBORN BABIES
Lai Guofeng's
wife holds her baby rescued by police in Fuping, Shaanxi Province, on August 5,
2013.
BEIJING, Aug. 6,
2013 (Xinhua) - Those involved in allegedly selling newborn babies to
human traffickers are "morally degraded" individuals and
"intolerable," China's top health commission spokesman said on
Tuesday.
The National Health and
Family Planning Commission called for severe punishments, and said it would
impose stricter medical service management and strengthen medical ethics
education nationwide to prevent such cases in the future, said spokesman Mao
Qun'an.
Several newborn babies were
allegedly sold to human traffickers by an obstetrician, surnamed Zhang, in
Fuping County of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, according to local police.
The case is a serious
violation of laws and has impacted society, according to Shaanxi authorities.
It has exposed
"loopholes in some medical facilities" and "a few medical staff
member's lack of legal awareness," the local authorities said in a
statement. The authorities added that the case severely infringed upon people's
interests and damaged the professional image of medical staff.
Doctor Zhang and five other
suspects involved in the case have been detained on suspicion of human
trafficking. The hospital's head and her two deputies were sacked on Sunday,
the statement said.
A baby was returned to his
parents on Monday after DNA tests confirmed the child's identity, police said.
The baby was allegedly sold
for 21,600 yuan (3,494 U.S. dollars) by Zhang on the morning of July 17, one
day after he was born in Fuping County Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital,
according to the county government.
Police said Zhang allegedly
obtained the baby by falsely claiming that the child had congenital diseases,
convincing the mother to abandon treatment and allow the doctor to take care of
the infant.
The mother, a woman
surnamed Dong, later realized that her baby might have been abducted and
reported the case to police on July 20.
The baby was found in a
township in Anyang City of neighboring Henan Province at around 3 a.m. Sunday
and was in good condition.
Local police said they are
investigating five other similar cases which allegedly occurred in the same hospital.
The Fuping County Maternal
and Child Health Care Hospital, as well as medical facilities nationwide, are
undergoing an overhaul in relation to relevant laws and regulations in order to
enhance legal awareness, ensure medical safety and effectively safeguard
people's health rights, according to the health commission.