Abandoned children reunited with mothers

Two children abandoned at hospitals have recently been taken back by their mothers, officials with a Shanghai scheme to reunite families said yesterday.

Since February, four institutions — the police, courts, city women's federation and civil affairs bureau — have been working together on such cases.

In the past five years, local hospitals have received at least 144 abandoned children, according to Youth Daily.

Often abandoned for health or family reasons, this practice is harmful to the child's development and a burden on hospital resources, said officials.

In one case, an illegitimate child had been left at a local children's hospital for three years.

The child's father was married and had an affair with the mother. The parents said they didn't want the child and had broken up when police traced them.

"We tried many ways to persuade them, such as showing them photos and videos of the child," said Lu Ronggen, deputy chief of the rights and interests department of the Shanghai Women's Federation.

Finally, the mother decided that she wanted her child back, while the father gave up his guardianship, Lu said.

In the other case, a sick baby had been abandoned at a city-level hospital.

Police traced the parents and found that the father is a drug addict, wanted by police. But the mother, who works in a nail parlor, was persuaded to take her child back.

"Being with their family is better for a child's development," said Lu. "Without parents' love, they are very likely to grow into unsociable, withdrawn people."

Keen to take back

Lu said many abandoned children had medical conditions that their families couldn't afford to treat. When their condition improved, many were keen to take their children back, she said.