弃婴——悲剧集中地

【导读】广州的「婴儿岛」开放后收留大量弃婴，而后仓皇关闭，引起争议。中国的社会保障体系尚不完善，但这些以人为本的创举，符合大势所向。

Abandoned babies
弃婴

Bundle of tragedy
悲剧集中地

A controversial scheme to deal with unwanted babies proves too popular
现在看来，那个解决弃婴问题的争议方案貌似过于「受欢迎」了。

Apr 5th 2014 | TIANJIN | From the print edition

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Safe haven
安全岛

“BEFORE abandoning, think carefully about your actions. Home is a child’s real safe haven.” So reads a sign on a small yellow building attached to an orphanage in Tianjin, a northern city (see picture). It is one of dozens of facilities, called “baby havens” in Chinese, that have been allowing parents of unwanted babies to leave them anonymously in a safe place. Pilot sites opened in 2011 and by last year 25 such buildings had opened around the country.
「在遗弃前请慎重考虑您的行为。家才是孩子的安全岛。」北方城市天津一孤儿院外的一幢黄色小房子上，写着这样一幅标语（见图）。中国有几十处名为「婴儿岛」的设施，允许家长在此匿名遗弃婴儿，将他们不愿抚养的孩子放置在安全的地方。天津的这幢小房子，就是其中之一。最初的几处婴儿岛开办于2011年，截止去年，中国各地已有25个安全岛。

Each baby haven has an incubator, a cot and a delayed alarm device so that staff can tend to a baby no more than ten minutes after it is left. But amid complaints from orphanages that they cannot cope with the high volume of babies, the policy is getting a second look.
每一个安全岛都配有一个保温箱，一张小床，以及帮助工作人员在十分钟之内发现弃婴的延时报警装置。不过孤儿院抱怨说没法安置大量弃婴，所以人们正在重新审视这项政策。

At the Tianjin facility, a surly watchman says visitors are not allowed in and that the facility will close soon. Officials in the southern city of Guangzhou have already closed their baby hatch less than two months after opening it. They have been “overwhelmed” by the 262 babies left there. Most of them had severe health problems, they say.
在天津的婴儿岛，一位粗鲁的守门人说，来者现禁止入内，而且婴儿岛也即将关门。南方城市广州的官员们，在开门之后的不到两个月内，就关闭了婴儿岛。他们被遗弃在此的262名婴儿给「震住」了。官员们表示，绝大多数弃婴有严重的健康问题。

As in other countries, it is often economic hardship that compels parents to abandon a child. But China’s one-child policy is also a factor. The policy is being relaxed, but only gradually. A sick or disabled baby is still often an unwanted burden for a family limited to one child.
与其他国家一样，中国的父母通常也是因为经济困难，而不得不遗弃孩子。不过中国的独生子女政策也是一项因素。政策正在放松，不过只是逐步逐步。有疾或残疾的孩子，对于只能生一胎的家庭来说，还是难以承受的重担。

Some critics say the hatches encourage abandonments that might otherwise not happen. Chen Lan, founder of a child-protection group, disagrees. She says giving up a child is an act of such desperation that parents will not do it just because a policy makes it safer.
一些批评者表示，要不是婴儿岛，一些弃婴事件本不会发生。婴儿岛助长了弃婴的风气。一个儿童保护小组的创始人陈兰（音）不同意这种说法。她表示放弃孩子多是出于绝望，父母不会仅仅因为一项政策让弃婴更安全的，就贸然行动。

A recent commentary at Caixin Online, a leading Chinese news website, accused officials at the Guangzhou facility of “retreating from their public duty”. The 262 abandoned infants did not just suddenly appear because a baby hatch was created, it said. “They were already around, but not cared for properly.”
中国的标杆新闻网站财新网最近发表了评论，指责负责广州婴儿岛的官员「逃避公共责任」。评论中称，不是因为设立了婴儿岛，才使得262位弃婴突然出现。「他们本就存在，且没有被很好照顾着。」

Ms Chen is confident the policy will survive. She says many nations have shown that, when a society reaches a certain level, it starts taking care of vulnerable children. “China has now reached that level,” she says.
陈兰对婴儿岛政策的延续很有信心。她表示许多国家证明，一旦社会发展到了一定水平，就会开始关注易受伤害的儿童。她说：「中国现在已经到了这个水平。」

From the print edition: China