World Watch
October 17, 2011 9:51 PM

After toddler is left to die, China disquieted

By
Joshua Norman
Topics
China
Yueyue, hit by truck, China

Yueyue, a 2-year-old, moments before she is hit by a truck in Foshan City in China.

(Credit: Chinasmack.com via Youku)

The video from Foshan City of Guangdong Province in China is unequivocal: A two-year-old is seen lying in a pool of blood on a market street having just been hit by a truck, which sped away after slowly running over her with its back wheels too, after which more than a dozen people walk around the toddler, none offering help.

The child, named Yue Yue, survived the accident, after a 56-year-old rag collector finally came to her rescue and dragged her out of the road, but not before a second truck hit the girl, according to China Daily. She is now, however, in rough shape - "brain dead," doctors say - and is unlikely to survive.

By itself, the video (WARNING: Graphic violence) has sparked worldwide news reports, and within China it has led to a serious discussion about public values.

The state-run news agency, Xinhua, writes: "High moral standards were once triumphed as national pride in China where individuals known for selflessly helping others were adored by the public. But in recent years, the perception of a decline of morals has become a hot topic as profit and materialism are perceived to be affecting society's values. On Sept. 2, an 88-year-old man in central China collapsed, his face striking the pavement. Yet, no one came to his aid, and he ended up choking to death on the blood from his nose."

According to many internet commentators, the relatively new tendency in China to ignore those in desperate need can be blamed on the "Nanjing judge."

Chinese news aggregator Chinasmack.com writes that phrase refers to "the 2006 case of a man named Peng Yu who helped a woman to the hospital after she had fallen only to have the old woman accuse him of knocking her down. The Nanjing judge in that case ultimately ruled that common sense dictated that only the person who hit her would take her to the hospital."

Several reports claim police have apprehended both drivers that ran over the girl and fled the scene. However, public anger seems to be mostly directed at the many who did nothing when helping was the only right moral call.


  • Joshua Norman

    Joshua Norman is an associate editor at CBSNews.com.

Add a Comment See all 296 Comments
by johndevinejr October 19, 2011 12:21 PM EDT
This is not a new development in China. A good friend of mine worked in China as an Electrical Engineer more than a decade ago. He told me that he had seen elderly people trampled in train stations and on busy public staircases and on one occasion he protected an eldely woman from being trampled.
Reply to this comment
by cbsblogger October 19, 2011 11:28 AM EDT
Is China becoming NYCized where greed prevails? Asians were historically very attentive to family.
Reply to this comment
by gemno October 19, 2011 10:33 AM EDT
Oh my God. Oh my God. Is this where the world is heading? Oh my God. How unbelievably awful .. terrible .. truly beyond any words or comprehension. We must reintroduce and require a respect for life in China as responsible human beings. If China becomes a predominant force in the world with this view of life God help us all. One of the most terrifying, traumatic and awful things I have ever seen in my life.
Reply to this comment
by Nailmaker October 19, 2011 8:07 AM EDT
Question: where was the parent when all this was happening? Even street kids have parents. Or how about the woman who fell into a snow bank in a Canadian Capital in an affluent area and died because no one helped her. She was there for days and was found when doing snow removal! It does happen all over the world. People are just too scared to get involved.
Reply to this comment
by ge556 October 19, 2011 2:57 PM EDT
In the Canadian case, it sounds like no one knew she was there.
by tmittelstaed October 19, 2011 2:47 AM EDT
Look at the case of Sarah Coit and Catherine Genovese, both of these women were stabbed to death, in public, with many witnesses, over a 1/2 hour period of time, right in the United States. And nobody stepped forward to help them, either. Of course, after they were dead and the cops and newspeople were there, plenty of people were more than willing to step forward and yap about it.

How exactly is this case in China any different? Oh I forgot - it's in China. It's easy to feel morally superior to China when you ignore your own front yard.
Reply to this comment
by Samlv October 19, 2011 10:51 AM EDT
China is a police state engaging in predatory trade as a weapon against the USA. They have little in common with us beyond DNA.
by nevvsterl October 19, 2011 2:31 AM EDT
THIS is what the REAL china is like with 1.8 billion mouths to feed, when you get out of the tourist cities and into the real china:

"spent two weeks in China a couple of years ago, when my wife's cousin married a Chinese woman. Most of that time, I was in a prefecture about 4 or 5 hours inland from Shanghai. Anytime we ventured out, we were approached by beggars, and they were the most pitiful looking creatures I have ever seen. Dirty, and the clothes they wore were almost literally rags. If you aren't in Beijing, Shanghai Hong Kong, or one of the other coastal cities, the people aren't at all accustomed to seeing foreigners, so we really stood out, especially to the beggars. One old man walked up to me, leading a small girl who was blind. He softly shook a little bowl at me until I just couldn't stand it anymore, so I dropped a couple of coins in there. The bride's mother yelled at me for what seemed like forever, telling me that now every beggar in the province would be following us, and she was right. It was like being pursued by The Walking Dead.

They ignore the poor in the Workers' Paradise."
Reply to this comment
by mgunn89512 October 19, 2011 9:51 AM EDT
So true, they are extremely poor, but shouldn't this evoke sympathy rather than disdain?
by nevvsterl October 19, 2011 1:59 PM EDT
by mgunn89512 October 19, 2011 9:51 AM EDT
So true, they are extremely poor, but shouldn't this evoke sympathy rather than disdain?"

No, because they created their OWN problem with overpopulation there, the govt and people's push for MORE babies, MORE, MORE, and this is the end result.
It will happen here too, in 1900 the US population was just 76 million, by 1950 it doubled to 150 million, and more than doubled in 2005 to 308 million, with that same pattern, by 2055 we could see 600 million.
Increased violent crime, shortages, pollution and all the other problems are the result.
by RichZubaty October 19, 2011 2:06 AM EDT
There is nothing anybody could say to make me think China is a normal society after seeing this. There is something really wrong with these people. And this is where our jobs have gone?
Reply to this comment
by TheKing313 October 19, 2011 5:48 AM EDT
yes, without the jobs there, situation there would have been mcuh worse!!
by smittyc October 19, 2011 2:02 AM EDT
I am sure the Chinese population is just as horrified as all who are posting on this topic.
Reply to this comment
by nevvsterl October 19, 2011 2:29 AM EDT
they got their own problems as THIS shows:

"spent two weeks in China a couple of years ago, when my wife's cousin married a Chinese woman. Most of that time, I was in a prefecture about 4 or 5 hours inland from Shanghai. Anytime we ventured out, we were approached by beggars, and they were the most pitiful looking creatures I have ever seen. Dirty, and the clothes they wore were almost literally rags. If you aren't in Beijing, Shanghai Hong Kong, or one of the other coastal cities, the people aren't at all accustomed to seeing foreigners, so we really stood out, especially to the beggars. One old man walked up to me, leading a small girl who was blind. He softly shook a little bowl at me until I just couldn't stand it anymore, so I dropped a couple of coins in there. The bride's mother yelled at me for what seemed like forever, telling me that now every beggar in the province would be following us, and she was right. It was like being pursued by The Walking Dead.

They ignore the poor in the Workers' Paradise."
by TheKing313 October 19, 2011 1:42 AM EDT
To nycbull.... Power, power power, that is all you care about. Please note that USA is NOT in Power anymore, not to knock on the USA, I like USA, but just some ignoeant people which annoy me due to their lack of wisdom. I bet you havenot had much knowledge about China and anywhere else. To live harmoniously, there should have no power structure, only the weak ones need power to make sure they are safe!! So wake up and smell the coffee!! Sure, i agree the rich and the poor are not treated the same in China, but name me a country that is not the same way. You know, the way the world is heading, there will soon have no virtual boundaries, but just the rich ones and the poor ones!! Unfortunately, we all live in a material world, money=power, it is a vicious cycle!! i still believe majority of people are good regardless of races, religion and origins!! so God bless us all -- the human race with no boundaries!!
Reply to this comment
by camikazee October 19, 2011 2:00 AM EDT
Boycot China today and forever! What is behind each chinese product? To hell with them!
by nycbull October 19, 2011 1:19 AM EDT
Boycott goods made in China. Can you imagine the world would be like if they are in power. They do not believe that all people are equal. They have a caste system where poor people are seen as dirt. They are NOT the United States of America. They do not have the same good philosphy as the US. BOYCOTT CHINA!!
Reply to this comment
by nevvsterl October 19, 2011 1:46 AM EDT
Boycotts aint gonna work amigo, EVERYTHING here is made in china, so are all the spare parts.
by Atlanticum October 19, 2011 7:53 AM EDT
nevvsterl, that is not going to last forever. Now would be a good start to not buy things from China, thereby creating a demand in our own country that can be filled from within.
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