Video Of Child Jumping To Escape 'Abusive' Mother Sparks Outrage In China: Report

A staff member from the local branch of the All-China Women's Federation has claimed that the mother was merely "bluffing" with the stick and that the child fell accidentally.

Representative Image: Minor jumps off a building to save himself from his mother

A shocking video recorded on June 25 in eastern China's Anhui province has gone viral on social media, showing a desperate child jumping from the top of an external air conditioning unit on a residential block's fifth floor in order to save himself from the alleged beatings of his mother. The viral footage captures the moment when the child, repeatedly struck by someone from inside the building with a stick, decides to take action by jumping from the fifth floor. The video has since garnered over 10 million views on Weibo, a popular Chinese social media app, according to a report by the South China Morning Post. 

Local police have confirmed that the boy, while in a non-life-threatening condition, suffered multiple bone fractures. However, a brief report on the police's official Weibo account sparked public outrage as it stated that the mother was hitting the child to "persuade" him to go back inside out of concern for his safety.

A staff member from the local branch of the All-China Women's Federation has claimed that the mother was merely "bluffing" with the stick and that the child fell accidentally, as reported by Jiupai News.

Responses from the public to the incident have been filled with disbelief and anger. Some have labelled the official explanation as a "cover-up," while others criticize the authorities for failing to prevent child abuse.

The child resides with his mother, as his father works in another city, reported the South China Morning Post.

A survey conducted between 2008 and 2013 by the Beijing Teenagers Law Aid and Research Centre revealed that 75 per cent of attacks on children were carried out by their biological parents, with step-parents or foster parents responsible in 10 per cent of cases.