Thousands in China join mother’s call for transparency over son’s death at school
- Police rule out criminal acts and say the family ‘had no objection’ to their conclusion that the 17-year-old fell to his death
- But an earlier statement said the student ‘took his own life due to personal problems’, giving no details, sparked uproar
The death of a 17-year-old student at his school in Chengdu, southwest China, has caused online uproar after his parents raised questions over an initial investigation that suggested he had taken his own life, without providing any details.
The education bureau in Chengdu’s Chenghua district issued a one-page statement on Tuesday saying that a student surnamed Lin at Chengdu No 49 Middle School was found to have jumped to his death on Sunday evening.
A joint statement by the district propaganda department, the police and the education bureau said that investigators had come to the initial conclusion that “the student took his own life due to personal problems”.
They said there was no evidence suggesting foul play, and they had not found “problems such as corporal punishment, verbal violence, teachers’ misconduct and bullying” at the school. The investigators said the school had “weak links” in providing psychological care for students.
Chenghua police branch said later on Tuesday that its own investigation had ruled out criminal acts and that it had informed the family, who “had no objection to the investigation’s conclusion”.