"What Grudge Do They Hold?"... Video of Young People Assaulting Elderly Spreading in China

Frequent Occurrence of Heinous Crimes Targeting Women, Elderly, and Other Vulnerable Groups

The scene of a group assault on an elderly person that occurred on the 24th on a street in Xishicun, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province. Six young men mercilessly beat one elderly man to near death.
Photo by a Taiyuan netizen, captured from social networking service (SNS).

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Nayeon] Taiwanese media including Liberty Times reported on the 26th that a video of a young man kicking an elderly person's head is spreading in Shanxi Province, China.

According to the report, on the 24th around 5 p.m., an incident occurred on a street in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, China, where young people assaulted an elderly man.

They pushed the elderly man down, and then a man kicked the elderly man's head twice with force.

At that time, an acquaintance of the fallen unconscious elderly man knelt and begged, but another man attempted to assault the fallen elderly man again with a liquor bottle.

The local public security, upon receiving the report, quickly dispatched officers and arrested three men and two women, and transported the victim to the hospital.

Taiwanese netizens who learned of the incident voiced criticism, saying, "First, women were gang-beaten in Tangshan, and now elderly people are being beaten in Taiyuan," "What kind of deep grudge leads to kicking someone's head?" "It's too cruel," and "They must be severely punished."

Earlier, on the 10th, in a restaurant in Tangshan City, Hebei Province, China, four women in their 20s were gang-beaten by seven men for refusing sexual harassment, sparking public outrage.

Even after the incident was reported, the local public security was slow to respond, and despite the victims being brutally assaulted, the forensic opinion stated that two had minor injuries and two had slight injuries, which caused a major controversy.

The Hebei Provincial Public Security Department announced that it dismissed the deputy director of the public security bureau branch for inadequate response and is investigating five public security officials, including the branch director, for serious disciplinary violations.

In addition, crimes such as assault and sexual exploitation targeting children have also reportedly occurred countless times across China just this month.

As such, crimes against vulnerable groups such as women, the elderly, and children have recently been frequent in China, causing public anger and headaches for the police and authorities.

If immediate countermeasures are not taken, these crimes could become a serious social problem. However, it is currently difficult to establish clear countermeasures, and authorities are expected to face increasing challenges.

It is now time for Chinese authorities to take action to eradicate these heinous crimes before they escalate into a larger social issue.