Deng Senshan's father, Deng Fei paid nearly a third of an average month's wage to send his son to a camp to cure internet addiction. His trust was betrayed by the camp counselors, though, who apparently tortured and beat his son to death. (Source: Deng Fei/Global Times)
And they say internet addiction is bad for you...
Just a couple weeks ago the suicide of a young employee at iPhone-manufacturer Foxconn, reportedly after being beaten and interrogated by his employer, shocked the tech community. Now another incident of alarming brutality in China has reached the public eye.
The life of 16-year-old Deng Senshan was cut tragically short when several counselors at a camp for internet addiction gave him a beating which proved fatal. The boy had been sent by his parents to the camp -- the Guangxi Qihang Survival Training Camp, a branch set up by Guangzhou Self-help Teenager Development Training Center -- in hopes of ridding their son of his preoccupation with the internet.
Deng Fei, the boy's father, paid 7,000 yuan ($1,024) to send his son to the camp for one month after he graduated from Ziyuan No. 2 High School in Guilin in July. The camp sounded promising, assuring "close management with training teachers." The camp's mission statement also solemnly promised, "Our methods are tough but do not include torture or other methods that might damage a child’s health."
That statement turned out to be the stark opposite of reality. The camp quickly put Deng Senshan in solitary confinement. A few days later the deadly beating occurred when camp counselors felt the boy was running to slow during a workout.
Realizing how severely they injured the boy, they took him to a local hospital, where he died after only 10 minutes. According to the medical records, "The boy showed no response to emergency treatment. He arrived with a very weak heartbeat and could not breathe. He was exhausted after being beaten. We were unable to save him."
A man surnamed Xia, who serves as the camp's principal, steadfastly claims the boy was not beaten and was taken to the hospital for a fever. However, the boy's father says that he had blood on his face and that his wrists featured bruises and other signs of being handcuffed.
Mr. Deng Fei is furious at his son's apparent murder and is seeking justice. He states, "My son was very healthy and was not a criminal. He just had an Internet addiction when I left him at the camp. The police informed us that our child had died on Monday morning. We can’t believe our only son was beaten to death. The teachers promised me that they would not use any physical punishment on my son when I dropped him off. We’re planning to sit before the local government for a protest tomorrow. If they don’t give us justice, we will go to the camp to confront them."
The three camp counselors responsible for the beating have been taken into custody.
In a land where public executions are considered acceptable, still, it seems like he has a good shot at getting his justice. However, one must wonder whether the corporal punishments inflicted by Chinese law enforcement are just an example of violence and brutality begetting more of the same.
"When an individual makes a copy of a song for himself, I suppose we can say he stole a song." -- Sony BMG attorney Jennifer Pariser
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