A hospital in Hunan was the venue for this kind of trafficking. The criminals persuaded women to give up their babies to unknown buyers, signing a declaration that made the sale seem “voluntary and free".
Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Police in Yiyang, Hunan Province, have uncovered a human trafficking racket, arresting a gang of six people for selling babies on WeChat for as much as 60,000 yuan (US$ 9,200).
Those taken into custody are accused of running a human trafficking operation via the popular messaging platform WeChat.
An investigative report by Xiaoxiang Morning Post was the first to reveal the scam.
Traffickers posted a message in mid-June that offered “a newborn, healthy boy” for sale. Anyone interested in buying him should “please come to Hunan, Yiyang quickly”.
The post included two videos of the infant and information about the parents, who “felt unable to raise a second child”.
Traffickers contacted pregnant women when they arrived at the hospital and were often able to quickly find buyers for their babies.
Birth mothers were asked to sign a declaration saying, “I give up my infant voluntarily [and] for free. I hope you [the adopted parents] can treat him with kindness”.
Infant trafficking is nothing new in China. Recently, a racket involving Cambodian surrogate mothers on behalf of Chinese clients was uncovered.
Thailand and India do not allow foreigners to use commercial surrogacy services available in those two countries.
For this reason, “rent-a-womb” agencies moved quickly to Cambodia, which also banned the practice in 2016.