The Chinese state media reported on Tuesday that the remains of 21 babies washed ashore on a riverbank in eastern China. It is believed that the bodies were dumped by hospitals because the infants were wrapped in yellow plastic bags, some of which were marked “medical waste.” Some of the babies had identification tags with their mother’s names, birth dates, measurements and weights. According to the official Zinhua News Agency there were also fetuses among the bodies, though sources within China conflict on that detail.
The bodies were discovered this weekend under a bridge in Jining in the Shandong province. The infants who had identifying tags were traced back to a local hospital and the People’s Daily Web site said that three of them had been admitted to the hospital in critical condition but did not say when they had been admitted. At least one of the identification tags visible in video footage of the bodies is marked April 2009. Thirteen other bodies remain unidentified.
“The hospital medical staff involved have been suspended from their work during the investigation,” Zhong Haitao, a spokesman at the Jining Health Bureau, told press. The Bejing News reported Tuesday that the bodies may have been dumped by cleaners from local hospitals after abortions and induced labor. But officials are still investigating the bodies and cannot confirm their origin.
It has not been reported how many of the babies are male and how many are female. The traditional preference for male children in China, particularly in rural areas, has led to a skewed birth ratio – 119 males born for every 100 females – despite government attempts to put a stop to gender selective abortion and infanticide. In most industrialized nations the ratio is 107 to 100.
