A scandal in China over mysterious gift parcels
The passion of some Chinese youths for mysterious surprise boxes has taken a tragic form ... as 160 animals were finally found trapped in parcels, some of them dead due to suffocation.
The cages sent by volunteers at the local Aizijia animal shelter were found inside a bus belonging to the ZTO logistics company in Chengdu, southwest China.
The animals that are still alive are receiving special follow-up from veterinarians, as the company announced on social networks yesterday, Thursday.
Describing the incident, the logistics company wrote that the bus in which the animals were found “was bustling with the sounds of barking and meowing.
Since the truck door was closed, it did not enter the air at all, and the animals were suffocated. ”
She explained that "a lot of dogs and kittens had died or were fighting."
"ZTO" apologized for the incident, explaining that the animals were sent in cages by e-commerce sites.
It indicated that its Chengdu branch, which is responsible for delivery operations, would conduct a "comprehensive internal investigation" and staff would undergo "safety training."
The incident sparked a scandal on social media in China, as animals are forbidden to be delivered in mailed cages.
However, for years, the country has witnessed the phenomenon of surprise boxes, and it has relied on buying a gift over the Internet whose content is unknown, and it often contains a game.
In 2019, the value of this market was estimated at $ 1.2 billion, according to market research firm Chiangan Intelligence.
A user of "Weibo", the Chinese counterpart to "Twitter", said that she saw a mysterious parcel containing a dog or kitten sold at a price not exceeding one dollar over the Internet.
A special tag on this topic has spread widely, as its views on “Weibo” exceeded 420 million as of Friday morning, amid many calls to boycott the parties involved in this scandal.
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