Living In Shanghai

Dying boy triggers living dilemma

SHANGHAI - The plight of a baby dying from a serious liver condition has led to heated debate over whether parents have the right to make life or death decisions for their children.

Lying in a bed surrounded by medical equipment at Shanghai Children's Medical Center, 9-month-old He Shunzhi, who was diagnosed with congenital biliary atresia at birth, will not live for long.

Infants are diagnosed with congenital biliary atresia when a blockage is discovered in the ducts that carry bile from the liver to the gallbadder. If not treated early, the condition may lead to liver damage and cirrhosis of the liver.

In April, He's parents, both farmers from Sichuan province, took him to Shanghai for treatment, but the expensive medical fees put the couple off. Despite objections from doctors and persuasion from volunteers, the couple removed the boy from hospitals three times and did not decide on treatment over the following three months, missing the best time for treatment.

Doctors said liver transplant surgery could offer a 90 percent chance of curing the disease. Meanwhile, volunteers promised that they could collect enough money to cover the cost of treatment.

But the couple refused, saying they feared the father might lose his physical ability to do farmwork after donating his liver to his son.

"The money should be donated to other needy kids," said the 36 year-old father, He Xingyun.

The baby was only taken for treatment last week when the mother was found holding him outside a hospital in the scorching sun. Three months without treatment had worsened the baby's condition and he was suffering severe bacterial infection. His abdomen is turgid and he is in pain every time he takes a breath.

"His case is not very optimistic. We have to cure the infection now, which is very severe," said Jiang Lirong, a doctor from Shanghai Children's Medical Center.

It is too late now to cure the baby, although the father has changed his mind and is willing to donate part of his liver to his son.

This tragic episode sparked heated discussion online, with some netizens criticizing the couple for violating the country's Juvenile Protection Law, and others even accusing the couple of "attempted murder".

"From a moral point of view, if a child gets sick, parents will do everything possible to save their life," said Jiao Hongchang, vice-president of the law school of China University of Political Science and Law.

Living in Shanghai: Fake Market Exploration

West Nanjing Road.

There are many things you can do if you’re living or visiting Shanghai from sightseeing on the Bund and shopping in the French Concession to restaurant hopping in Tianzifang but one thing that many people talk about is checking out some if not all of the Chinese markets in Shanghai. These Chinese markets sell everything from clothing and electronics to little trinkets and toys. There are around half a dozen or so located throughout the city and they always seem to be popular tourist destinations.

The market I would like to tell you about is one located on West Nanjing Road in the area between People’s Square and West Nanjing. Now after some research and thought my friends and I felt that this would be one of the better ones to visit and I can’t say we were wrong.

Now for many people the best end result would be good quality products at a fair price and although I agree with this sentiment I feel it’s missing one key aspect which is a great cultural experience. If you have ever been to China or other countries similar to it you know that haggling is commonplace when it comes to markets/bazars etc. I would even go as far to say that it is perhaps discourteous not to haggle plus very silly as well because you could end up paying more money for a fake product then what the original is priced at. The point I’m trying to make is that this process of bargaining discourse with each shopkeeper you meet is a great experience in itself.

For all those savvy shoppers a smart idea is to think of something in particular you want to get before you arrive at the market otherwise you might be overwhelmed with choice and prices by the time you get there and this can be quite confusing. I know that the market I went to had four floors of shops each of which were very small this meant there were a lot of them. It’s funny as well because most of the places sell similar or even the exact same products which means that you can barter with multiple people for one product and hopefully achieve a very good price.

Another cool and interesting aspect of this market was the café in the middle of the building where you could get drinks and snacks which we did quite happily. It was nice to be able to take a break from all the commotion and liveliness of the place and assess where we would go next. By the end of the day we were all quite exhausted but very much satisfied. A couple of my friends bought items ranging from suits, watches, chopsticks and ties. I would say we were all rewarded for our hard bargaining and effort. That being said after four hours of walking around you do feel like it’s time to pack up and head home.

Living in Shanghai

Living in Shanghai

Dreaming in Chinese, Mandarin lessons in life, love, and language

Life and Death in Shanghai

Fodor's Shanghai