Officials pass the buck for boy's death

The local government said that the death of a 13-year-old boy in Xinyang, Central China's Henan province, who went missing six months ago and reportedly died of severe malnutrition and tuberculosis in April, was 70 percent his own fault. The remaining blame, it said, should be divided equally between the orphanage that was supposed to care for him and his parents. Comments:

His guardians and any other parties concerned are responsible for the death of the 13-year-old juvenile with mental health problems, or in legal terms, a person without, or with limited, capacity for civil conduct. With regards to the boy's physical condition, those local departments that failed to fulfill their duty of care should be held accountable on charges of dereliction of duty. The responsibility distribution announced does not match what the previous investigation said.

Beijing News, June 10