Procuratorate sends abandoned 5-year-old boy back to his parents

A Shanghai district procuratorate recently returned an abandoned 5-year-old boy to his parents, who showed remorse for abandoning him and demonstrated a willingness and capability to fulfill their custodial duties.

The Shanghai Putuo district people's procuratorate said it is set to revisit the law on the right of child custody to ensure the best family care for a child.

At the center of the case is 5-year-old Liuliu, who was born prematurely in March 2015 and diagnosed with possible cerebral palsy in a Shanghai hospital.

At the time, Liuliu's father, surnamed Xu, worked at a clothes manufacturing plant in Shanghai and was the only breadwinner for his rural family in Henan province. After learning that the baby's medical treatment costs had reached more than 100,000 yuan ($14,000) and that he might not be able to lead a normal life, Xu decided to leave him at the hospital.

Liuliu turned out to be in good health. After trying in vain to contact Xu, the hospital transferred the baby to a child care center affiliated with the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau.

In March 2019, the boy's parents were tracked down and Xu was arrested. In July, the father was jailed for six months for abandonment. The mother was exempted from criminal penalty as she was going through a lactation period with their daughter.

During the investigation, the parents saw the boy for the first time more than three years after he was abandoned. The mother burst into tears. The father lamented his act of abandonment and expressed a strong willingness to continue to care for his child upon completing his prison sentence, according to Zhang Yafang, a chief procurator of the case.

After comprehensive appraisal of the parents' willingness and family condition, the procuratorate decided to allow the child to live with his parents on a three-month probation basis.

Upon completion of the probation, prosecutors on child cases revisited their home and sat down with police officers and workers from the local village committee and women's federation, who were responsible for supervising the couple's custodial duties.

"We felt we'd made the right decision to give them a second chance once we saw the child had formed good living and eating habits under his parents' care and was very outgoing and close with his elder brother and younger sister," Zhang said.

Parents who abandon their children are usually deprived of custody. Their grandparents might take up guardianship based on their willingness and condition in some cases, or the children are sent to child welfare institutions, Zhang said.

Those deprived of custody of their biological children are usually not able to have their custodial rights restored, according to the Civil Law.

Through the handling of the case, the procuratorate said it has established a system－the first of its kind in the country－to give a second chance to eligible parents who have shown remorse as well as a strong willingness and due capability to continue taking care of the children they abandoned.

"The fundamental intention of the system is to let more children grow up with ordinary but precious family love," Zhang said.

The system also includes a negative list for parents who will not be allowed to regain custody, said Xu Lichun, another procurator specializing in child cases at the district procuratorate.

"Those who had mistreated their children for a long time, sexually abused or hurt them violently are on the negative list, as well as those with improper habits, such as being addicted to drugs and alcohol, or without the support of fellow residents to take care of the child," she said.

The procuratorate said it would garner more experience in the system, which would hopefully be extended to more regions in the city and the country.