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CHINA> National
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Grassroots website tightens on kidnappers
By Wang Ru (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-06-05 11:25 The success of the venture has come with great risk, as Zhang and fellow volunteers are often threatened with violence. One of her colleagues, who uses the name Zai Zai, has helped rescue 37 children since 2007. A young man who appears easygoing and trustworthy, he meets trafficking gangs and poses as a potential child buyer as part of sting operations.
"I've developed a way of detecting traffickers. When I have enough evidence, I report them to local police ," Zai Zai told China Daily.
Government red tape, however, has hampered some of the group's ambitious activities, as has a lack of funds. "We wanted to put the information of children in orphanages online, so parents can get access. But the local civil affairs bureau always refuses as they think it violates the children's privacy," said Zhang, who runs the website from her home in Tonghua. "So far, we have received about 10,000 yuan ($1,500) in donations, which has been spent on helping the released children go to school or see doctors. But now I want to build a foundation to be able to reward those who report useful clues." The success of the website has received much attention from the government. In April, Zhang was among nine Baobeihuijia volunteers invited to Beijing by the Ministry of Public Security to discuss anti-abduction measures with top officials. "The officials accepted lots of our suggestions, such as how to build a DNA database to help identify abducted children and how to start investigations quickly after receiving reports from parents. We are really proud," she said. The central government launched a crackdown on human trafficking in April and published a list of the 10 most-wanted offenders. So far, four have been arrested. Police at all levels were also ordered to conduct more interviews with the public to gather more clues on existing cases.
"Lots of useful information lies in our hands thanks to volunteers spread across the country," said Zhang. "After the discussion in Beijing, we were encouraged to provide clues about possible human traffickers, potential buyers and children suspected of having been abducted. The ministry has also set up a DNA database and aims to have all 236 laboratories in China linked as soon as possible. The bank will store samples from parents to match against a child suspected of being abducted or living on the streets. Zhang's next priority is using her website to help those youngsters found roaming or begging in the streets. "Most street children are abducted and forced to beg by their owners. They are often abused and lead miserable lives," she said. "Some traffickers even freeze a child's arms in a refrigerator and break them off. The more miserable the children look, the more their owners earn. "People should not give money to these young beggars, instead they should call the local police. Although, many cities do not have the polices to help street children." During the search to find her son, Deng Huidong has met many parents in Guangdong in her position. She has now collected information on more than 200 missing children. "We have united to find our lost children. I still believe my son could return to me someday," she said. Peng Gaofeng, 31, is searching for his four-year-old son, who vanished in March from the street in front of his family's small shop in Shenzhen. Surveillance cameras showed the boy being led away by an unidentified man. Since that day, life for Peng and his wife has been a nightmare. Both are volunteers for Baobeihuijia and, last month, Peng's wife gave birth to their second son. "When he grows up, he will seek his elder brother with us and become a volunteer," said Peng. "Perhaps, I'll never see my eldest son again, but I just pray the same thing doesn't happen to another family."
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