“樂園”變“煉獄”

In 2014， the Chinese government announced a proposed system to intervene minors’ guardianship to legally protect minors’ rights and interests. According to the law， parents who do not perform their duties should be deprived of guardianship. At the time， the media and experts all discussed the problem and made it a hot topic whom minors’ custody belonging to. We should find the reason for the abuses of children and parents’ default in China.

2014年，中國政府宣布擬出臺未成年人監護干預制度，從法律層面保護未成年人權益不受侵害。而且法律還將規定，父母失責將取消監護權。一時間，各路媒體、專家紛紛探討父母的監護權問題，也讓未成年人監護權到底歸誰所有，成為熱議話題。究其原因，還得追溯到中國大地時常上演的各種虐童和父母失責的戲碼。

China: endless child abuses

中國：層出不窮的虐童現象

On November 16th， 2012， five children’s dead bodies were found at street dumpsters in Qi Xingguan District， Bijie City， Guizhou Province. Post-investigation found that they had lived homeless life for a long time， which made the public seethe with indignation.

Also in 2012， a boy aged three and a half years named Lele， in Longgang District， Shenzhen， was wounded by his mother for not being obedient when having a meal， and he was then dead after many days of coma.

In May， 2013， a villager Yang Shihai in Goupi Village， Shichang Town， Jinsha County， Guizhou Province was found to have kept ruthlessly maltreating his ten-year-old biological daughter for five years in the way of cruelly beating， burning her head with boiled water， clamping her hand with pliers， pricking her finger with needles， making her kneel on saw tooth and others.

On June 21st， 2013， two little girls in Jiangning District， Nanjing， were found dead from hunger at home， and they were only one year old and three years old respectively…

2012年11月16日，中國貴州畢節市七星關區街頭的垃圾箱內，驚現5名未成年人的尸體，事后調查發現5名孩童生前長期流浪在外，一時輿論嘩然。

同樣是在2012年，中國深圳龍崗區一名三歲半的男童樂樂因為吃飯時不聽話，被母親打傷，昏迷多日后不治身亡。

2013年5月，貴州省金沙縣石場鄉構皮村村民楊世海在長達5年的時間里，用毒打、開水燙頭、鉗子夾手、針扎手指、跪鋸齒等方式對10歲的親生女兒進行殘忍虐待。

2013年6月21日，南京市江寧區兩名幼女被發現餓死家中，兩名女童分別只有1歲和3歲……

Endless “child abuse” cases not only make the world shock， but also expose China’s deficiency in minors’ custody and supervision. It makes people think when a healthy and sunny growing environment for juveniles can really come?

層出不窮的“虐童”案例，讓世人觸目驚心之余，更暴露了中國在未成年人監護監督方面存在的缺失。這也讓世人開始思考，未成年人需要的健康、陽光的成長環境什么時候才能真正到來？

In European and American countries， negligent parents deserve severe punishment

歐美國家：父母失職，懲罰嚴厲

However， from world reports， this kind of phenomenon does not only exist in China. There are cases of parents’ lack of responsibility in Japan， America， Holland and other countries. According to Child Abuse， an annual investigation report issued by American Government Bureau for Children in 2011， “there were 1537 children dead of maltreatment or overlook in 51 states in America in 2010.” At the same time， Chinese People's Network reported that， “according to statistics， there are about 95 thousand of child abuse complaints in France every year and 20% of them turn out to be true. Over 90% are committed by immediate family members with physical and mental abuses as the main part.

Slightly different from China， most European and American countries have enacted strict punishment mechanism to deal with parents’ negligence of guardianship.

然而，縱觀世界各國報道，父母失責現象絕非中國僅有。日本、美國、荷蘭等國家也有不少父母監護權不到位、責任缺失的案例。據美國政府兒童局2011年發布的《兒童虐待》年度調查報告顯示:“2010年，美國五十一個州共有1537名兒童因受到虐待或忽視而死。”同時，據中國人民網報道，“據統計，每年法國約有9.5萬虐童投訴，調查后發現，其中約20%屬實。這些案件90%以上是自己家庭直系親屬所為，并以體罰與心理虐待為主。”

與中國略微不同的是，目前絕大多數歐美國家制定了嚴格的懲罰機制，以應對父母監護不到位的問題。

In September， 2003， a 25-year-old American mother Turgut hit her four-year-old daughter on impulse， and was stripped of her custody by the American government and sentenced to three years in prison. Also in America， on April 22nd， 2012， an American mother allowed her child to swim alone， since juveniles cannot guarantee their safety when swimming alone; the mother was arrested.

In 2009， an underage Dutch girl Laura Dike decided to sail around the world alone with the support of her parents. The Holland Social Welfare Institute thought that the parents’ agreement lacked of responsibility. For that， Laura was banned to go on the tour and her parents were stripped of custody for two months.

According to the news， in March， 2010， a woman in Osaka， Japan locked her three-year-old daughter and one-year-old son at home. Since she had not left enough food， two kids starved to death when she came back at the end of June. The Japanese court sentenced her to 30 years in prison.

Besides， according to a Hong Kong report， a 33-year-old British widow neglected her children because of addiction to games， and she was sentenced to prison on the charge of child abuse. According to a local TV station in New Zealand， “a father who had just immigrated there was sentenced to six months in prison because he slapped his own child on the street.”

2003年9月，25歲的美國媽媽圖古特因沖動出手打了自己4歲的女兒，隨后被美國政府剝奪了她的撫養權，并處以3年的監禁。同樣在美國，2012年4月22日，美國一位母親應允自己的孩子獨自游泳，因孩童屬于未成年人，獨自游泳不能保證其安全性，最終這位母親被逮捕。

2009年，荷蘭未成年少女勞拉·戴克在父母支持下，決定獨自駕船環游世界。荷蘭社會福利院認為，她父母的贊同是不負責任的行為。因此，不僅禁止勞拉出游，還臨時剝奪了勞拉父母兩個月的監護權。

根據媒體消息， 2010年3月，日本大阪女子將3歲的女兒和1歲的兒子鎖在屋內，因為沒給孩子預留足夠的食物，等到她6月底再返回住所時，兩個孩子已經餓死。最終，日本法院判處她30年監禁。

此外，據香港媒體報道，33歲的英國寡婦沉迷游戲，疏于照顧未成年子女，最終，這名婦女被判虐待兒童罪而入獄。另據新西蘭當地電視臺報道，一位剛移民到此的父親，在街上打了自家孩子一耳光，最后這位父親被法庭判罰6個月的監禁。

All these “chilling” cases not only raise global concern， but also draw the attention of many legal experts and human rights defenders. Problems come one after another. Did the cases happen by accident or inevitably? Were there any deep-seated reasons behind them? How to protect minors’ legal rights and interests and put an end to such kind of tragedies?

這一樁樁“心寒”案例的出現，不僅引起了全球的關注，也得到了不少法律專家、人權主義者的重視。縱觀這些案例，究竟是事出偶然還是必然？父母失責背后有何深層次原因？如何真切保護未成年人的合法權益，杜絕諸如此類的悲劇重演?

Did it happen for a reason?

事出有因？

Investigation once found that unintentional injury is the “chief culprit” of the death of children under the age of fourteen. There are more than 1 million children under this age died from unintentional injuries every year and the number is on the rise， which directly exposes parents’ negligence of custody in daily life.

According to an American report in 2010: 36.3% of abusers are at the age from 20 to 29， 31.8% from 30 to 39， and 14.1% from 40 to 49.” What can be seen from the statistics is that the younger the parents are， the less guardianship they may provide. Toennies， a German sociologist once said: “In city life， the relationship among relatives and neighbors are declining day by day. People lack common value and standard that the things they care about are their own interests. Therefore， city life is of egoistic values， people’s relationships falling apart and becoming unscrupulous and selfish.” The saying is more suitable for parents in their early 20s. Many of them just come out the “harbor”， and suddenly are told to face the “cruel reality” of raising the next generation when they themselves expect good life in the future， so they are booked for impatience or even propensity for violence. At the same time， according to Japan Labor Ministry， over 80% of married people under the age of 20 have shotgun marriages. Becoming parents “overnight”， these young people are not ready for this， and are easy to take out of their anger on children as long as life or work does not go well. Besides， parents in countries of traditional family concepts and patriarchal families treat children as their private possession， which can be disposed at will. Some decayed ideas like “A dutiful son comes from beating，” and “Spare the rod， spoil the child” are even popular nowadays， especially among young parents who have not received good education.

曾有調查顯示，意外傷害是14歲以下兒童死亡的“罪魁禍首”。全世界每年有超過100萬的14歲以下兒童死于意外傷害，且這一數據有增長趨勢。這一調查也直接暴露了全球家長在日常監護過程中存在的種種不足。

據美國2010年的一份報告顯示：“36.3%的虐待人年齡在20歲-29歲之間，31.8%的虐待人在30歲-39歲之間，14.1%在40歲-49歲之間。”從這組數據可以看出，年紀越輕，越容易發生父母監護不到位的現象。德國社會學家騰尼斯曾言:“在城市生活中，親屬關系、鄰里關系日漸衰微，人們很少有共同的價值和規范，他們關心的只是自己的私利。因此城市生活的特點就是唯我獨尊，分崩離析，肆無忌憚的個人主義和自私自利。”騰尼斯的這段話在20歲出頭的父母身上可能表現得更為明顯。對于20歲出頭的父母來說，很多人剛走出“避風港”，在心中的美好生活還未到來時，卻被突然告知要養育下一代的“殘酷事實”，難免在養育方面出現不耐心，甚至暴力傾向。同時，據日本勞動省統計，在不到20歲的已婚人口里，有80%以上都是奉子成婚。“一夜”之間做父母的年輕人，心里沒有準備，只要生活、工作不順利，很容易就把氣撒在孩子身上。此外，在很多受傳統家庭觀念及父權思想影響的國家中，父母將子女看作是自己的私有財產，可以任意處分。甚至，推行“棍棒下出孝子”，“不打不成材”的腐朽觀念，尤其在未接受過良好教育的年輕父母心中表現尤為明顯。

At present， many professionals and authorities analyze: “Confronted with pressures from work， life and society， parents cannot educate their children in a careful and patient way.” A psychological counselor Zhang Hongyun thinks that economic pressure could be an important reason for inadequate use of guardianship. “Over 90% of people get their jobs in enterprises in Shenzhen. Fast-paced life and great mental stress are easy to cause extreme thoughts and actions，” said Yue Zheng， Dean of Academy of Social Sciences in Shenzhen. Related officials in Korea’s Central Specialized Agency for Child Protection also think that child abuse is easier to happen in low-income families. In 2011 alone， one quarter of child abuses happened in families living on minimum government subsidies. Meanwhile according to Korean Central Daily News， if there are economic difficulties， parents tend to indulge their children， which lead to deficiency of custody. Shen Jie， sociology professor of Japan Women's University said， “The most important reason for the rise of child abuse lies in the stresses brought to the families from long-term economic depression， the accumulation of which makes parents be in a mental state of sudden angry and violence.” It seems that in order to create a bright future for children， it is very important to improve the living conditions of these people.

According to data， since 1970s， America， Britain， Germany and other countries have gradually turned to the principle of “maximization of children’s interests” when dealing with problems related to minor guardianship， but they still cannot put an end to such kind of tragedies. The reason involves poor legal supervision and management and incomplete relief policy. Like China， many countries have some legal provisions related to minors’ custody， but they are far from enough to meet the need for safeguarding their lawful rights and interests. The lack of specific provisions on responsibility investigation leads to ineffective implementation of guardianship system.

目前，還有不少行業人士和權力機構就此分析稱，“面對工作、生活和社會各方面的壓力，為人父母者并不能細心、耐心的去教育他們的孩子。”中國心理咨詢師張紅云認為經濟壓力可能是父母監護權使用不到位的一個重要原因。“深圳90％以上的人在企業工作，社會節奏快，心理壓力非常大，容易造成精神的極端，采取極端行為。”中國深圳市社會科學院院長樂正分析。另韓國中央兒童保護專門機構相關負責人也認為，低收入家庭更容易發生虐童案件，僅2011年間，韓國就有四分之一的虐童現象發生在領取基本保障金的家庭中。據韓國《中央日報》報道說，如果家庭經濟出現困難，家長放任孩子的次數就會增多，很容易導致父母監護不到位現象。同時，日本女子大學社會學教授沈潔認為，“對于日本家庭虐待孩子案件的增加，最重要的原因還是經濟長期不景氣給家庭帶來的種種壓力，這種壓力的累積導致父母親的精神處于易暴易怒的狀態。”看來，要為未成年孩童撐起一片藍天，改善這群人的生活條件顯得尤為重要。

據相關資料顯示，自20世紀70年代以來，美國、英國、德國等國家在處理未成年子女監護問題時漸漸轉向“兒童利益最大化”原則，但仍然無法徹底杜絕悲劇的發生。究其原因，有法律監管不利，也有救濟政策不夠完善的因素。還有很多像中國一樣的國家，雖有一些法律條文中都涉及到了未成年人監護問題，可這還遠不能滿足保障未成年人合法權益的需要。由于缺少對責任追究環節的具體規定，監護制度并未得到有效的貫徹執行。

Barriers to depriving irresponsible parents’ guardianship

剝奪不負責任父母監護權的障礙

It is an important move in most countries to protect legitimate rights and interests of minors through stripping the guardianship of parents who do not perform their duties. According to China Phoenix Net， “Currently， the custody revocation system is generally established around the world. When guardianship is abused or there are something going against children’s growth， judicial process can be started to change custody or strip the original one and other guardians can be appointed by the court.”

“For guardians who refuse to fulfill responsibilities and severely hurt the minors， the essence of administrative intervention is to deprive the guardianship through judicial proceeding. It is not to deprive parental right， but to play a deterrent for similar behaviors by setting up a legal bottom line for the minors，” said Zhang Shifeng， Director of Social Affairs Department of Ministry of Civil Affairs. For most of the countries with related laws， the fundamental purpose of stripping guardianship is to protect children， and it only aims at those parents who abuse custody. “Stripping guardianship has to be done， which is the necessity for social development and civilization progress. It can guarantee the maximization of children’s interests and meets the basic requirements of State Law of protection Minors，” said Huang Ermei， Vice-President of Supreme People’s Court.

對于不能履行監護義務的父母，剝奪其監護權，這已成為世界上絕大多數國家保護未成年人合法權益的重要舉措。據中國鳳凰網報道:“目前，世界各國普遍建立了監護權撤銷制度。當監護權被濫用或存在不利于未成年成長的行為時，能夠啟動司法程序要求變更監護權或剝奪原監護人的監護權，由法院另行指定監護人。”

“對拒不履行監護責任、嚴重傷害未成年人的監護人，行政干預的核心就是通過人民法院提起訴訟剝奪監護人的監護權。這樣做不是為了剝奪親權，而是通過為未成年人設置法律底線，對類似行為起到震懾作用。”中國民政部社會事務司司長張世峰說。在大部分制定法規的國家看來，剝奪失職父母監護權的根本目的是保護孩子，且只針對少數濫用監護權的父母。“剝奪某些失責監護人的監護權，既是不得已而為之，是社會發展和文明進步的必須，也是確保實現兒童利益的最大化，更符合國家未成年保護法所要達到的最基本‘底線’”，中國最高人民法院副院長黃爾梅指出。

However， finding other suitable guardians is not as easy as stripping guardianship. Even though there are successful experiences in America and other western countries. There are special legislation and institution in America dealing with child abuse. Warmer places are right there waiting for children when their parents lose their custody. But a lot of elements still hold back the move. For example， in China’s Civil Law and Law of protection Minors: Parents and other guardians who do not perform their duties or harm the legitimate rights and interests of minors， and do not change behavior after education， will be disqualified by the court according to the application of related ones or units， and other guardians will be appointed by the court. But in practice， there are barriers both in depriving guardianship and appointing other guardians.

In addition， according to Korean Central Daily News， because of difficult living condition， a Korean boy was abused since one year old by his mother who suffered from postnatal depression. Neighbors reported the situation to Child Protection Agency， and the mother repented. But three years later， the same story happened again. The agency failed to intervene because of the parents’ strong objection.

We are not going to talk about whether it is good or bad to strip guardianship. Maybe we can learn something from the words of Friedrich Frobel， a German educator， “A nation’s fate is more like in the hand of mothers， than in that of power-holders， so we need to inspire mothers-human’s educators.”

然而，剝奪父母監護權容易，重新找合適的監護人并不是易事。雖然美國等西方國家有成功經驗，據了解，美國專門有應對兒童虐待事件的立法和處理機構，父母被剝奪監護權之后，會有更溫暖的地方等著孩子。但還是有很多原因會阻止剝奪父母監護權的行動。如中國《民法通則》及《未成年人保護法》規定：對于父母或其他監護人不履行監護職責或侵害未成年人合法權益，經教育不改的，人民法院可以根據有關人員或者有關單位的申請，撤銷其監護人的資格，依法另行指定監護人。但實踐中，無論是撤銷監護人資格還是另行指定監護人都存在一定障礙。

另外，據韓國《中央日報》報道，韓國一男孩因母親患有產后抑郁癥，且生活困難，從一歲開始就受母親的辱罵，鄰居將其向兒童保護機構舉報，母親有了悔改，可三年后，該母親再次被舉報，但因父母的強烈反對，保護機構未能插手。

剝奪父母的監護權是利是弊，暫不談論.“國民的命運，與其說是操在掌權者手中，倒不如說是握在母親的手中，因此，我們必須努力啟發母親—類人的教育者。”德國教育家福祿培爾的這句話或許能給我們帶來一些啟發。