For the love of a child
Kindergarten children in Hanshan County, East China's Anhui Province, play traffic games. |
"It could have been my boys if they had not gone to visit their aunt that day," says the 38-year-old.
She recalls that the tragedy took place on a summer weekend. The two boys were picking mulberries by the riverside. They slipped down a slope and fell into the river. Other children came back to get an adult. But it was too late. Their bodies were recovered from the Juhe River some two kilometers downstream.
Nanzhangdai village, about 100 kilometers east of the capital, has many natural ponds, the river and a busy highway nearby - and more than 285 children under the age of 18.
"The village has seen drownings and traffic accidents almost every year over the last ten years, as a result of poor awareness of safety on the part of parents," says Chai Yushan, a village leader.
"Those accidents either claimed a child's life or left them badly injured."
Children in Zhengzhou, Central China's Henan Province, are shown how to save those who have fallen into water. |
Since 2005, with help of UNICEF China, a child injury-prevention program has started in Beijing, in an effort to identify and prevent these childhood injuries.
"A safe childhood is the right of every child. And yet, compared to their urban peers, rural children are at greater risk of getting hurt by falls, drowning, gas poisoning, burns and scalds, dog bites and traffic," says Chen Yanping, an official with Beijing Women's Federation, which is responsible for the program.
Currently the program is underway in two pilot districts - one in Zhongguanchun, China's silicon valley, in downtown Haidian District; the other in three rural communities of Pinggu District.
A case of child injury is not only a tragedy for the family. Chen says in 2003, there were 139 cases of child injury every day in Beijing, which resulted in 150 million yuan ($20 million) in direct economic losses.
It is hoped the program will help raise child safety awareness, especially among rural parents, she says.
A safety management program has also been established in Nanzhangdai village to examine the root causes of childhood accidents.
"We first set up a dog registry, so families could avoid dog bites. Dogs must be kept at home instead of being allowed to run loose like before. A fine as high as 200 yuan ($26) can be levied if owners let their dog run around," Chai Yushan says.
Moreover, dog owners are required to have the animal checked regularly for health problems.
To deal with risks hidden in natural settings, a village patrol team of 10 has been organized to patrol busy street and alongside rivers and ponds.
"Our responsibility is to make sure no kid swims in the river, that traffic slows down near schools and that children only cross at the zebra crossing," says Gao Xueying, a 54-year-old woman member of the patrol team.
She says a patrolman's monthly salary can go down by 10 percent if a child gets injured in an area under his or her jurisdiction. But if the area remains accident-free, the patrolman can hope to receive a bounty of as much as 20 percent of his or her pay.
The village has also allocated more than 400,000 yuan ($52,600) to develop a safe environment for children.
A health clinic has been set up to ensure that children get timely treatment when an injury occurs. And, a 160-square-meter playground has been built to keep children from wandering the busy streets.
"Our efforts are paying off," Chai says. "In 2006, no child suffered injuries in our village. When children are safe, families and the village can have a future."
Thanks to the intervention program, the three pilot villages of Pinggu District saw only 46 child injury cases in 2006, 27 fewer than in 2005.
"Safety is really love for your children," says Song Wenzhen, director of the children's section of the National Working Committee on Children and Women under the State Council.
To reduce child mortality is a pivotal aim of the Millennium Development Goals. But in the past, Song says, "infectious-diseases control was the first priority of our work agenda as they were the main threat to children's health."
Now, unexpected injury is becoming a crucial public problem. These claim about 100,000 lives a year of children aged 0-14 in China.
"Injury-based mortality is already responsible for 65 percent of child deaths from all causes. Injuries have emerged as the number one killer of children," says Zhu Xu, project manager of UNICEF China.
However, childhood injury is preventable, avertable, and cost-effective. Therefore, Song Wenzheng says: "We must walk on two legs - one for epidemic prevention, the other for injury prevention, in order to ensure a safe childhood for our children."
Zhang Lianjiang, who has two grandchildren, is responsible for the ponds and intersections lying in the center of Nanzhangdai village.
The 73-year-old says: "Children are very precious to parents, no matter whether they are poor or rich. The loss of a child is a loss both to the family and the county, because a child's future cannot be measured. He or she could be a premier, or a super scientist, you never know.
"Guarding our children's safety is guarding our family and society's welfare," he adds.
(China Daily 07/20/2007 page20)
