Although China has included the potential for a parent's "loss of custody" in its law that protects minors (effective since 1991) and its general Civil Law (effective since 1986), the provision has since been left unimplemented. Now calls for reviving this "zombie provision" are rising after media reported that a brother and sister in Guangdong Province have allegedly been severely physically abused by their father and stepmother for seven years.
The tragedy was made public after the 16-year-old girl and her 12-year-old brother fled to their uncle in fear that their father would beat them to death if he saw that they could not finish the tasks that he had demanded they do. Pictures showed that both children appeared malnourished and were covered with bruises and scars. The children told local paper Guangzhou Daily that they have lived with their parents' physical abuse since their father married their stepmother seven years ago. Their parents began to force them to craft handmade flowers that could be sold to help support the family, and if they failed to complete their daily quota, they would be cruelly beaten with sticks, fists or laundry drying racks. The children also told the reporter that their stepmother often refused to give them food and once soaked them with a bucket of urine.
Their uncle was shocked to learn of the children's daily suffering. He claimed he did not have a good relationship with his brother. He had once asked about the children, but their father had reportedly replied: "It is none of your business." Once, a teacher noticed their injuries and wanted to visit the children at their home out of concern, but the children rejected this offer of help because they were afraid that their beatings would only intensify after the teacher left.
Their father has refused to answer media questions and their stepmother has denied the accusations. Local government departments have launched an investigation into the case. The two children now live with their uncle. They refused to return to their parents' home, for fear of more physical abuse.
Outraged by the parents' brutality, many netizens questioned why people in China have historically not taken domestic violence against children seriously. "Many parents regard their children as personal property and believe beating their children is a family affair," said one commenter. "Sadly, many police officers agree with this." Remarked another: "It is better for the children to be sent to charity institutions than to be returned to their parents." In a 2015 interview with Beijing Times, Zhang Xuemei, director of the NGO Beijing Youth Law Assistance and Research Center, said that the current "loss of custody" statute held little water because it failed to define which person or organization had the right to take custody of a child if he or she needed to be removed from an abusive parent's home.
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