Chinese teenagers kidnapped by Burma militants

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/4305315/Chinese-teenagers-kidnapped-by-Burma-militants.html

At least 50 teenagers from the northern Chinese province of Shanxi have been kidnapped by Burmese militants.

By Malcolm Moore in Shanghai
Last Updated: 3:46PM GMT 21 Jan 2009

According to Chinese state media, the parents of the children have reportedly been told that their children will be tortured if the ransom demands are not met.

Zhang Yunbao, a police captain from Yuncheng, told the state-run China Daily newspaper that the police had received "at least 50 reports" of kidnapped children but that the actual number could be much higher.

The teenagers are allegedly being held in the lawless Burmese city of Myitkyina after being lured south with the promise of jobs.


The first kidnapping case in Shanxi occurred last September, when 16-year-old Zhou Dawei told his parents he was travelling to the southern province of Yunnan, which borders Burma - also known as Myanmar - to take a job.

At the beginning of October, he called his father, Zhou Runsheng, to say that he had been arrested for drug-dealing and that he would be executed if a fine of 80,000 yuan (£8,000) was not paid.

Similar demands were made to the parents of other missing children over the following days. One teenager, who was released after the ransom was met, said he had been invited to a birthday party by a friend, and introduced to a man who offered him the chance to make money working for Burmese militants.

After crossing the border, however, he was thrown into a cell where several other boys were being held. Captain Zhang said the Chinese police know where the boys are being held but that it is outside their jurisdiction.

"The Myitkyina area is controlled by militants who don't even listen to the Burmese government," he said.