Photograph of woman with aborted foetus sparks fury in China

By Dilip -
Feng Jianmei was allegedly forced to abort her seven-month-old foetus because she couldn't afford the 40,000 yuan fine
A graphic photograph of a young Chinese woman lying beside the body of her aborted seven-month-old foetus has roused fury over forced abortions in the country. National and provincial authorities say they are investigating claims that family planning officials in Zengjia town, in the north-western Shaanxi province, coerced Feng Jianmei into the termination. The official Xinhua news agency said three officials were being relieved of their duties: two top local family planning officials and the head of the township government.
While forced abortions and sterilisations are illegal in China, experts have blamed recurrent abuses on the pressure on officials to meet the strict birth control targets. Chen Guangcheng, the blind legal activist who fled to the US embassy after years of imprisonment and house arrest, fell foul of authorities in the eastern Shandong province for his work in supporting victims. Feng's case sparked outrage after a picture of the 22-year-old lying beside the aborted baby circulated widely on Chinese websites and microblogs. "It is not abortion. It is obviously murder!" said one comment. "Don't stain the family planning policies through forced abortions," said another.
Feng's husband, Deng Jiyuan, said Feng was "sad and distressed" after being hooded, abducted and forcibly injected to induce the abortion. The couple had failed to meet demands for 40,000 yuan for breaking birth control rules, he told the South China Morning Post. "That's more than what I earned in four years … We don't have that much money," he said. Zhenping family planning authorities had said on Monday that Feng agreed to the abortion "after repeated persuasion". But Feng told Radio Free Asia: "No, it wasn't [with my consent]. It was forced. That's what happened." Deng added: "Several people pushed her into a car and then drove her to the hospital. My family was barred from seeing her. She would not consent to the procedure, so they forced her to put her fingerprint from her left hand on a document."
Deng said he wrote about the case online after his complaints to local officials appeared to have no effect. Most urban families are allowed to have one child, while rural families can usually have a second if their first is a girl. On Friday, city officials said a deputy mayor has visited Feng and her husband in the hospital, apologised and told them officials would be suspended...

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