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Missing Chinese Student Turns up in Hong Kong Prison

A 21-year-old student from Shenzen University who went missing this week during a shopping trip to Hong Kong has now turned up. The young woman, whose name and photo is all over social media, has been arrested for shoplifting – and now everybody knows it. “A single slip might cause everlasting damage,” many people say.

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A 21-year-old student from Shenzen University who went missing this week during a shopping trip to Hong Kong has now turned up. The young woman, whose name and photo is all over social media, has been arrested for shoplifting – and now everybody knows it. “A single slip might cause everlasting damage,” many say.

News about a young woman from Shenzhen going missing in Hong Kong has drawn wide attention on Chinese social media this week. After the woman, Luo X., had left for Hong Kong on a shopping spree, her cell phone was turned off. Worried friends and family could not reach her for 2-3 days.

It now turns out that the female student from Shenzhen University has been arrested in Hong Kong for shoplifting. Chinese media report that Luo was caught stealing over 2000 RMB (±300$) of products in cosmetic & drug stores.

In the search for the ‘missing’ woman, her personal information and photos were already widely shared on social media before the story took a sharp turn.

One of the reasons the story initially drew so much attention is because this summer has already seen multiple stories on Chinese women going missing while traveling. In June, a student disappeared while studying in the United States. Two sisters were found murdered in Japan in July, and a female teacher from China was reported missing last week.

The case of Luo X. became the most-searched topic on Baidu on August 2.

On Weibo, the story has attracted thousands of comments and shares today. It also became the number 1 searched topic on Baidu on August 2. Many people call the whole story “a loss of face,” since all of Luo’s personal information is on social media now. “Normally the media always blurs the face of shoplifters, but now her face and name already is everywhere,” one person commented.

Some people note that it might be hard for the girl to return to her university and find work now that her details have been so widely publicized. “A single slip might cause everlasting sorrow” (“一失足成千古恨”), a typical comment said.

Before it turned out that Luo was arrested in Hong Kong, Shenzhen University referred to her as a “candidate for their graduate program,” now they only refer to her as “a student.”

Many people joke: “No person has been lost, there’s just a person who lost face” (literally: “There’s no person missing, there’s a ‘lost person'”, meaning someone who has lost face “人没丢,但丢人了”).

“So shameful for her, I will pray for this girl,” some netizens say.

There are also many people on Weibo who find the situation not just shameful for the woman, but for mainland Chinese in general, who already have a bad reputation in Hong Kong: “Couldn’t you find stuff to steal in the mainland? Now you’ve given the Hong Kong people another mainlander to scold..”

“It’s good that she has been found. Although it’s embarrassing, at least her parents can have a peace of mind now,” one commenter says.

Multiple sources report that Luo X. will remain in custody for 14 days.

By Miranda Barnes

©2017 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

Miranda Barnes is a Chinese blogger and part-time translator with a strong interest in Chinese media and culture. Born in Shenyang, she used to work and live in Beijing and is now based in London. On www.abearandapig.com she shares news of her travels around Europe and Asia with her husband.

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China Local News

Changsha Restaurant Employee Pays the Price after Protecting Abused Child

A Changsha restaurant employee who intervened when a mother beat her child ended up paying the price for it.

Manya Koetse

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The story of a restaurant employee who had to pay the price for sharing a video of a mother beating her child has triggered anger on Chinese social media.

The incident happened on September 14, when Mr. Jiang (江), an employee at the ‘Peng Shu’ Western-style restaurant in Changsha, stopped a mother from beating her young daughter at the shopping mall where the restaurant is located.

As reported by the Guizhou media channel People’s Focus (@百姓关注), a mother and daughter at the restaurant drew the staff’s attention when the mother began physically assaulting her daughter.

The mother, clearly overwhelmed by her emotions, resorted to kicking, hitting, yelling, and even attempting to strike her child with a chair, allegedly in response to the child accidentally spilling ice cream on her clothing.

During this distressing incident, which was captured on video, Mr. Jiang and another colleague intervened to protect the child and immediately alerted the police to the situation.

But the one who was punished in the end was not the mother.

The video of this incident was shared online, leading the woman to repeatedly visit the restaurant in frustration over her unblurred face in the video. The police had to mediate in this dispute.

To the dismay of many netizens, the employee ended up being forced to pay the woman 10,000 yuan ($1369) in compensation for “moral damages.” He has since resigned from his job and has left Changsha. A related hashtag was viewed over 110 million times on Weibo (#餐厅员工发顾客打娃视频后赔1万离职#) and also became a hot topic on Douyin.

The majority of commenters expressed their anger at the unjust outcome where a restaurant employee, who had attempted to protect the child, faced repercussions while the mother appeared to avoid any legal consequences for her actions.

“Where is the All-China Women’s Federation when you need them?” some wondered, while others wanted to know why the incident was not followed up with an immediate investigation into the child abuse. Others suggested that if it were a man who had beaten his child, authorities would have been quicker to intervene.

The issue of corporal punishment for children often comes up in Chinese social media discussions. While many people find it unacceptable to beat children, using violence to discipline children is also commonplace in many families.

When China’s first national law against domestic violence came into effect on 1 March 2016, article 5 and 12 specifically addressed the special legal protection of children and made family violence against children against the law.

By Manya Koetse

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©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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China Local News

Chinese Man Wants to Marry Deaf-Mute Girlfriend, Marriage License Application Gets Denied

The marriage was denied after a local official found the woman did not learn sign language and could not write.

Manya Koetse

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WEIBO SHORTS

A man from Gongyi, Zhengzhou, Henan, recently became a trending topic on Chinese social media due to the denial of his marriage license application with his girlfriend, who is deaf and mute.

According to Chinese media reports, both sets of parents had consented to the marriage, and the couple had already taken their wedding photos. However, the local Bureau of Civil Affairs rejected their application, citing the requirement for both parties to independently declare their intention to marry.

The woman, who had never attended a school for the Deaf, lacked the ability to use sign language, write, or communicate effectively. The Bureau advised the couple to return once she had completed her education and could express her desire to marry.

The potential future mother-in-law of the young woman spoke to Chinese media, explaining that her daughter-in-law’s situation was unique, as she had not attended a specialized school and therefore could not meet the marriage requirements.

The man’s mother expressed disappointment about the marriage being denied in an online interview.

As news of this incident circulated on Chinese social media, many people praised the “responsible decision” of the local Bureau of Civil Affairs.

Last year, one human trafficking case gained national prominence after a TikTok vlogger exposed the horrific living conditions of a woman in Xuzhou who appeared to be unable to communicate. She was married with eight children and kept in a shed next to the house, tied to a chain.

It later turned out that local officials made errors in properly checking and verifying when approving the marriage certificate.

While many people believe that cases like the one in Xuzhou should never occur again, some also feel that the situation in Gongyi is unfair to the girl. Given that both sets of parents had already consented to the marriage, and the couple had even taken wedding photos, some argue that it is unreasonable to expect the girl to learn sign language before proceeding with the marriage.

One commenter from Sichuan points out: “Ordinary people who are facing infidelity and domestic violence during their marriages already struggle with divorce. For a deaf and mute person who cannot communicate through sign language and who has no way of communicating, we can’t be sure about their marriage intentions. However, we can be sure that if they need a divorce, it might be a nearly insurmountable challenge.”

Also read: Twists and Turns in the Tragic Story of the Xuzhou Chained Mother

By Manya Koetse

Get the story behind the hashtag. Subscribe to What’s on Weibo here to receive our newsletter and get access to our latest articles:

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©2023 Whatsonweibo. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce our content without permission – you can contact us at info@whatsonweibo.com.

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