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A Chinese court has jailed six men in connection with the high-profile human trafficking case involving a woman who was found chained in a shack in China’s eastern province of Jiangsu.
On Thursday, the woman’s husband, Dong Zhimin, was sentenced to nine years in prison for abusing and illegally detaining his wife Xiao Huamei.
Five others were also sentenced to between eight and 13 years in prison and each fined for trafficking in Xiao decades ago.
The court found Dong guilty of torturing Xiao and forcing her to do it eight children between 1999 and 2020.
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According to the Xuzhou City Intermediate People’s Court, Dong became very abusive when Xiao, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia, got worse after her third child.
Dong took her to an outdoor shack in 2017, where she was tied up with ropes and chains with no electricity or water.
Yao Hui, the presiding judge, said Dong failed to provide medical care to Xiao and repeatedly made her pregnant despite her mental disorder.
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The verdict was recorded heavy criticism and anger on Chinese social media, with many people saying the penalties are too lenient and reforms are yet to come.
“It’s her whole life but only nine years for him,” wrote one Weibo user.
“Change the law, the sentence is too lenient,” said another user.
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Activists are pushing for tougher legal reforms, noting that light penalties do not discourage traffickers and shoppers.
The human trafficking case came to light in January 2022 when a video of the victim went viral on Douyin after a vlogger visited Huankou Village in Feng County.
The vlogger found Xiao tied around his neck in a doorless shed in an apparent daze while wearing a light sweater in the cold winter weather.
The story goes on
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Dong defended himself by imprisoning his wife because she was schizophrenic and prone to violent behavior.
Following the incident, online public outrage prompted Chinese authorities to do so investigate.
In February 2022, local authorities confirmed that Xiao was a multiple victim of human trafficking.
Xiao, who was born in 1977, married in 1995 and divorced in 1997 before a woman took her to Jiangsu province, allegedly to help her seek medical treatment and find a new husband for her. However, the woman sold them to a farmer in Donghai County in 1998 for 5,000 yuan (about US$728).
A year later, Xiao was sold again to a couple, who then arranged for her to be sold to Dong’s father.
According to investigations last year, Xiao was taken to a hospital for treatment, where she is currently staying, and her children were placed in state custody.