Chinese-Belgian adoptee seeks roots in Hunan

Joyce Bex, a woman who was adopted by a Belgian couple from China 22 years ago, is looking to find her birth parents in Hunan province, Central China, according to Yiyang Daily.

Bex said she was abandoned in a basket at front of an orphanage in Yiyang, Hunan province, on Oct 22, 1995. A piece of paper inside the basket provided no other information aside from the infant's birthday on Sept 6.

Bex was later adopted by a couple in Belgian, who lived in Brussels, in 1996. She also has a brother who was adopted from Bolivia, and their parents informed the pair about their adoption when they were older.

Knowing about her adoption, Bex returned China to visit the orphanage in Yiyang when she turned 16 years old.

"Back then, I thought about finding my birth parents, but I was afraid of what would happen if I found them," she said in a video she recorded to inform the world of her search.

However, Bex's friends told her it may cause trouble for her Chinese parents as they would be punished by law for abandoning their daughter.

While Bex momentarily stopped her search, she decided to re-open the chapter after graduating from university this year and meeting a range of people who were adopted as well. Bex said she learned about adoption and life, and heard stories of people being reunited with their birth family.

Upon telling her parents, who were supportive of her decision, the couple contacted friends in China to ask for help.

Cai Delin, from Yiyang, heard the story in July and decided to help Bex by contacting local police, orphanages and communities. Unfortunately, the effort brought little progress due to limited clues and long-time intervals.

Cai then suggested Bex to broadcast her story on television and online, which she agreed to do and ended up travelling to Yiyang in September for 10 days.

"The reason I want to find my birth parents is because I want to recover my past," Bex said.

"I'm also curious about the people who look like me and gave me my life.

"I ask myself 'who am I?' every day. 'Where do I come from?' Yiyang is the only place which knows of my past. I think I will try to find my natural parents and find answers to my questions," she said.