Defending the case for human sympathy

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By Chen Weihua (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-13 07:46

Shanghai's Minhang district made a name three months ago for the collapse of a newly built 13-storey apartment building. Now it has become a battleground for human sympathy against the power abuse by a local law enforcement team.

Zhang Jun, a white-collar worker who was fined 10,000 yuan ($1,470) for illegally carrying passengers in his car, filed a lawsuit last week against the Minhang Traffic Administrative Law Enforcement Unit. He demanded that the defendant revoke the penalty and pay the court fees.

It all happened on Sept 8 this year when Zhang, marketing manager of a multinational firm, was driving to work. A man pleading stomachache and inability to find a taxi asked Zhang for a ride.

After getting into the car, the man offered to pay Zhang for the ride, which Zhang said he immediately rejected. Just as the car was about to turn a corner, the man grabbed the car key. Meanwhile, about seven or eight uniformed men appeared out of nowhere. They pulled Zhang out of the car and took the car key and his driver's license.

Zhang said that he was treated like a criminal - both his arms held against his back and his throat chokingly seized. He was then pushed into a van. On Sept 14, the law enforcement unit announced that Zhang should pay a 10,000-yuan fine for illegally operating a taxi. Zhang paid it in order to get back his car, which had been held by the law enforcement unit for a week.

The public was appalled to learn of Zhang's experience. They have shown overwhelming support for the kind-hearted young man. The entrapment set up by the law enforcement team is widely regarded as indecent and constituting an abuse of official power against innocent citizens.

News reports show that Zhang was not alone. The Minhang Traffic Administrative Law Enforcement Unit caught a total of 5,000 "illegally operated taxis" during 2007-08 and bagged over 50 million yuan in fines.

Further investigation shows that entrapment, of the kind Zhang went through, has been routine. As a result, officers and informers earn cash rewards. Similar cases were also reported in other cities.

The public outrage was expected. Abuse of official power aside, the action by the Minhang law enforcement team has violated something people held dear - human sympathy.

If what Zhang did was wrong, should people still help others in need? Sympathy, which has become increasingly rare in today's society, is in danger.

If Zhang were found guilty, we were simply acting against what the whole society has been preaching for decades. Model soldier Lei Feng, a national role model known for offering unselfish help to strangers, would also be called into question. Our children will begin to suspect what teachers and parents have said about sympathy and compassion.

Such moral confusion needs to be avoided. If sympathy no longer exists, we would be less human, and farther away from the harmonious society we are pursuing, and the Better City, Better Life Shanghai is striving for.

For this very reason, we cannot afford to see Zhang lose in court because it will be a loss for most people. Although the Minhang court is reported to have a tradition of ruling in favor of the law enforcement team in similar cases, this high-profile case should be a break with the past.

In the coming weeks, Minhang will again be in focus, not for the fall of an apartment building but for a court case that may end exploitation of sympathy.

E-mail: chenweihua@chinadaily.com.cn