Jin Zhen (www.cqnews.net): No matter how we criticize those people who abandoned their children, the fact is that a good number of young parents secretly desert their babies. In most cases, these irresponsible parents can't afford to raise a child who may suffer from congenital diseases or are born unexpectedly.

Each family has its untold difficulties. No one would abandon his or her baby if there were other choices. Instead of leaving the babies to their own fate, it's better to place them in shelters built by charity organizations. At least, these babies may be taken care of by voluntary workers. Even if the babies cannot survive the congenital diseases, they will be treated with love and care, not to mention that some babies even grow up healthily with the aid of the public.

Life is invaluable. If there are no such "safety islands" these abandoned babies undoubtedly will have their lives come to a miserable end. To avoid such tragedies, efforts should be made to relieve parents from the worries of high medical charges. As individuals' strength is limited, the government should give full play to its functions, helping these parents raise the babies by allocating special funds for free medical treatment of birth defects.

Xiao Chang (Xi'an Evening Post): Any organization, whether hospitals or welfare homes, should stick to the principle of humanism. When these institutions admit abandoned babies unconditionally, it seems that they have given tacit encouragement to the wrong-doings of the parents. But the top priority should be given to the rescue of these poor babies.

Of course, people who abandon babies should be punished for their immoral and illegal behavior. But at the same time, we should recognize that these babies are innocent and should not suffer for the irresponsible acts of their parents. It is no different from abandoning the babies for the second time if we refuse to set up such asylums for fear of encouraging their parents . In short, it's empty talk to oppose the establishment of such "safety islands."

Some people argue that society has never refused to help these babies, since abandoned babies are always admitted by orphanages once they are discovered. They believe if the babies have to be left in the wilderness or on the streets, their parents will hesitate to do so. However, if they can abandon their babies in special asylums like the "safety island' in Shijiazhuang, the parents will feel less guilty. Here we should make it clear that it is the government that should be responsible to curb the phenomenon of abandoning babies, rather than charity organizations, which should be committed to providing poor babies with a warm family. From welfare institutions' perspective, saving abandoned babies is an urgent task even if there is a contradiction between setting up asylums and eliminating abandonment.

Jia Xijin (The Beijing News): We should not relate the establishment of the speical room outside the social welfare institution to eliminating abandonment.

The topic has also stirred up disputes in other countries. From the perspective of the law, if a baby is placed in the special incubator, are the police still entitled to look for their parents and impose punishment on them? Some experts believe the hardship and bitterness the abandoned babies may experience will make their parents feel guilty. In this regard, helping these babies will assuage the sense of guilt of their parents, which may lead to the indulgence of the breach of law.

Despite opposing voices, similar acts are employed in many other countries. For example, in countries like Britain and the United States, which have a great number of illegal immigrants, there are special organizations committed to helping these immigrants earn a livelihood and campaign for human rights. Some aid organizations even provide drug addicts with clean injection needles and mild drugs like methadone as alternative treatment.

If illegal immigration cannot be stopped, should we protect the basic human rights of illegal immigrants? If drug abuses cannot be eradicated, should we help prevent drug addicts from related diseases? If baby abandonment cannot be completely eliminated, should we give these babies a chance to live?

It seems that making a choice is difficult. First, it is normal to be imperfect. Second, there is no prerequisite for human rights. No human being, whether illegal immigrants or drug addicts or abandoned babies, should be sacrificed to solve social problems. Third, society plays a different role from the government, as the former is more tolerant. For example, when the government is busy addressing social problems like baby abandonment, drug taking and illegal immigration, society is committed to saving abandoned babies, decreasing the chance of being infected with drug-related diseases, and reducing the suffering of illegal immigrants. If there is no perfect solution to a social problem, we should at least deal with it to the best of our abilities.

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