New hope for infant abandoned to her fate

• Source: Global Times
• [02:14 February 08 2010]
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Public reaction divided

The plight of the newborn baby triggered a strong backlash among the public with some calling the girl's parents inhumane and saying the baby girl deserved her right to live, while others have called for understanding over the parents' decision.

Zhang Yonghong, the father of a 1-year-old "glass bone" daughter, said it is both illegal and inhumane to abandon a newborn baby.

"My daughter's condition is far more serious than Little Hope's. But I have never given up, even if there is only a tiny hope for my daughter's recovery," he said.

Zhang's daughter, Zhang Tianyu, suffers from Osteogenesis Imperfecta, an incurable – but treatable – genetic disorder also sometimes known as brittle-bone disease or Lobstein syndrome.

"Little Hope"'s father hadn't spoken publicly as of Sunday. But the baby's uncle told the Tianjin-based Morning Post that "the girl's parents have borne tremendous pressure and they are on the verge of collapse."

"How could outsiders understand the feelings of the baby's family," the uncle said. "Those who have criticized the baby's mother are just liars. We are trying to hide the truth from the baby's mother. We have no other choice because we have to think about the young mother who has to bear the combination of the agony of giving birth and suffering from such a heavy blow."

A poll conducted by Sina.com showed that, as of Sunday, more than 80 percent of 22,819 respondents said the father's actions were understandable because the family didn't want to see the girl suffer unnecessarily. But 12 percent said the father doesn't have the right to decide whether his girl lives or dies.

Incomplete statistics show that Beijing sees more than 200 abandoned babies each year. In Shenzhen, more than 20 abandoned babies are sent to the city's Social Welfare Center each month. The reasons varied from birth defects and under-age pregnancy to a preference for boys.

Aside from hospitals, other babies have been left at the doors of governmental agencies or rich people, or in markets or at the sides of roads. Some find homes, but for others it's often too late to help them.

Some parents who abandoned their babies and caused their death have been sentenced to two or three years in jail in recent years.

Song Shengxia contributes to this story