BEIJING, (Reuters) – Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has ordered an investigation into the case of four “left behind” children who apparently committed suicide by drinking pesticide in a poor part of southwestern China, as millions of workers leave loved ones to find work.
In many rural parts of China, children are left in villages to be looked after by grandparents or other relatives while their parents work in the booming cities.
They are either not able to join their parents because of their jobs, or because in many cases they lack the paperwork needed to live in urban areas and access services like schools and health services.
The four children, one boy and three girls aged from five to 13, were left alone at home in Bijie in Guizhou province and died after drinking pesticide on Tuesday, state media said.
Once Li found out what had happened he was “extremely concerned”, the central government said in a statement on Friday.
Li ordered the relevant government departments “increase supervision” so that social security mechanisms do not “become a mere formality”.
Those found to have not done their job properly will be “held accountable”, the statement added.
