From Washington Post:
The children answer to nicknames such as “Seagull,” “Brightness,” “Summer” and “Ocean,” but they come with scars that social workers initially mistake for dirt. When they first arrive at the two-story house here, they hoard toothpaste, or they hide new socks and steamed buns in their bed quilts, as if they were precious gems.
……The law is unclear on who should provide for the children of China’s more than 1.5 million prisoners. No government department is willing to supervise them. Historically, relatives have taken them in, but in practice, many unwanted children are shuffled from family to family. Sometimes, even the families do not want them.
A small number of children, like the 12 at the home here in Dalian, receive care at “Children’s Villages,” (ÂÑøÁ´•ÊùëÔºâorganizations usually run by civic-minded individuals. But there are no more than nine or 10 such organizations nationwide, serving perhaps 1,000 children, experts say. Prisoners have an estimated 600,000 children under the age of 18, according to Justice Ministry statistics; experts argue that the actual figure is higher. [Full Text]
