Bureau mulls returning buried baby to parents

Related departments are negotiating the return of the baby boy who was allegedly buried alive back to his parents, the civil affairs bureau of Laiwu district in Jinan, East China's Shandong province, said on Monday, Zongxiang News reported.

The boy was found buried on a mountain by two villagers on Aug 21 and was sent to the hospital. Rural doctor Zhou Shanghong paid the medical cost, which totaled about 50,000 yuan ($7,075).

On Oct 20, Liu Yuzeng, the boy's grandfather, turned himself in at the Yangliu police station of Xintai, a county-level city near Jinan, claiming the boy is one of his twin grandsons after domestic media reported the news. He said the boy was born with serious diseases. The family gave up on medical treatment and brought him home. Later the grandma buried him after they thought he was dead. He learned that the boy had been "revived" from media reports.

On Oct 23, the boy was discharged from the hospital after his condition remained stable. Doctor Zhou brought him to her home in temporary custody, which she said was approved by the Xintai police.

Two days later, Liu was placed under criminal detention by the Xintai police.

Doctor Zhou's father said previously that she wanted to adopt the boy. However, the civil affairs bureau of Laiwu district said she doesn't meet the requirements of adoption because she has a child.

But the move of sending the boy back to his parents has sparked heated debate among netizens, with many disapproving it.

Netizen LawyerLiuHui said, "The parents abandoned the boy for his illness and the rural doctor paid 50,000 yuan to cure him, and now the parents want him back? Abandonment is a crime. Such parents are inadequate as guardians."

Netizen Qiwuxian viswj asked, "What if they throw out the boy again when he gets sick one day? I don't trust the parents."

Netizen Yizhizhuti said, "What are his parents doing all this time? The news never mentioned them."