"Resurgence" correction school
Guangxi Nanning Qunbo Encouragement School was accused of violently suppressing and verbal abuse "reforming" students; it was cancelled by the education department for the third time for illegally running a school
On November 29, 14-year-old Li Wen was immersed in the game, while quickly pressing the control keys in the mobile game, while telling his experience in the Qunbo Inspirational School.
The bruises on his body have receded.
"They should all go to jail", when Li Wenhong said this, his eyes trembled and his voice trembled.
The disdain of trying to "disguise" seemed to disappear in an instant, and what was left was the fear and helplessness of a 14-year-old boy.
Uninterrupted verbal abuse, batons that may fall on the bottom at any time, indistinguishable day and night confinement rooms, eight hours of corporal punishment-in November 2021, 20 underage students spoke together to report Guangxi Nanning Qunbo Encouragement Education school (hereinafter referred to as Qunbo Encouragement School) is suspected of "correction" of violence.
Qunbo Encouragement School is located in an unknown scenic spot in Xixiangtang District, Nanning City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, about 30 kilometers away from Nanning city.
The site is very remote, with few foreign visitors except local villagers.
As of this year, nearly 2,000 students have signed up for Qunbo Inspirational School.
According to the school's official website data, more than 95% of them are minors, the ratio of boys to girls is 2:1, and the youngest is only 8 years old.
During the more than 300 days of restricted freedom, some students tried to climb over a five-meter-high double-layer barbed wire fence, or escaped by swallowing shampoo to obtain medical treatment.
To them, they are like prisoners.
Illegal schools have been shut down during the condemnation, but "correction institutions" like Qunbo Encouragement School have never been silent.
As early as 2019 and 2020, the Education Bureau of Xixiangtang District, Nanning City has issued rectification notices and notices of revocation of institutions twice on the grounds of unauthorized enrollment and operation of schools.
But soon after a lapse of time, Qunbo Encouragement School changed its site and made a comeback.
On December 2, a reporter from the Beijing News learned from the Education Bureau of Xixiangtang District, Nanning that the local area issued a notice of revocation again, requesting Qunbo Encouragement School to immediately stop illegal schooling and do a good job in demobilizing and appeasing students.
Involving violations of the law, they will be transferred to judicial organs for investigation and punishment.
The "derailed" teenager being escorted
"Push the tower at speed, you go on the sidewalk"-14-year-old boy Li Wen kept showing his game skills to reporters.
In front of the screen, he led the overall situation, constantly repelling the opponent until he broke through the high ground and the enemy's crystal was destroyed.
The half-hour game is the most exciting moment for Li Wen, which is a sense of accomplishment that I have never experienced in the real world.
A year ago, Li Wen, who had just been promoted from elementary school to junior high school, became obsessed with mobile games.
After completing the game all the way, he also became a game blogger with millions of fans.
Gradually, Li Wen lost control of his time, did not do homework, was tired of school, and his academic performance plummeted. Later, he simply refused to go to school.
Hidden in the room all day playing games became all of his life.
In order to prevent his son from playing games, Li Wen's parents tried every means: cut off the network cable, hide the mobile phone, and keep guarding them every step of the way.
The family, which was full of laughter and laughter, is full of quarrels every day.
On the evening of December 16, 2020, Li Wen locked the door as usual, put on his headphones, and prepared to start the game.
The knock on the door of "dongdongdong" became the beginning of Li Wen's "nightmare".
"They said they wanted to take me to the discipline school for training. I didn't agree. The two men held my neck." Li Wen recalled. After struggling for a while, Li Wen was pushed downstairs and "held" upstairs. A white van was sent to Nanning.
Sun Xiaoxue has a similar experience.
On Sunday, March 7, 2021, Sun Xiaoxue's 16th birthday.
After having a birthday lunch with her family, she was "lied" to get into the car by her parents.
Sun Xiaoxue, who is first in love, is a fan of Riman.
Because they shared a hobby with a boy in the class, the two walked closer, which made the parents nervous.
"They followed me. As long as I came back half an hour late from school, they would scold me for not knowing my face." Sun Xiaoxue felt that her parents were suspicious and sensitive, and she often secretly unlocked her mobile phone password and checked the content of the chat while she was taking a shower or sleeping. .
Not returning home at night, clubbing, and learning to smoke became Sun Xiaoxue's way of revenge, and the family relationship fell to a freezing point.
At the same time as Li Wen and Sun Xiaoxue were sent to Qunbo Encouragement School, there are 45 students.
In the eyes of their parents, they are "derailed" teenagers who are difficult to discipline: some are addicted to the Internet, some fight truant, and some have even dropped out of school.
According to the official website of Qunbo Encouragement School, as of this year, nearly 2,000 students have signed up, of which more than 95% are minors, the ratio of boys to girls is 2:1, and the youngest is only 8 years old.
The day of losing freedom
Violence is a common memory left by Qunbo Encouragement School for teenagers.
On the first day of Qunbo Encouragement School, Li Wen was pressed on a chair and shaved off his hair.
After handing in personal belongings such as mobile phones, Li Wen was assigned to an "instructor" surnamed Wei.
After the "instructor" ordered Li Wen to take off his clothes, he squeezed in a camouflage uniform.
Then, Li Wen was locked into a closed room.
Li Wen recalled that in a space of about 100 square meters, there was a window nailed by a double-layer barbed wire. The sunlight could only come in through two palm-sized holes in the wall. That was the only vent in the small dark room. .
When they were locked in, there were more than 20 boys of the same age sitting on the floor with their heads down.
After Li Wen slapped the wall, cursed, and yelled, the "instructor" surnamed Wei took him away from the small black room. The black stick slammed on his hips and waist continuously, and Li Wen "pained too much to stand up".
"As long as there is a little resistance, you will be beaten. When it is light, it will be beaten. When it is serious, it will be beaten everywhere. Depending on the mood of the'instructor', it will hit you until you are satisfied." Li Wen recalled.
In the confinement room, Li Wen spent nearly 20 days.
Entering the "little black room" is the first level of "reconstruction". Every time a student yells, he will be admonished with a stick.
The tools for going to the toilet are plastic basins that have been used repeatedly, eating rotten rice and steamed buns, and sleeping on blackened mats.
After coming out of the little black room, the daily "special training" officially began. In addition to simple Chinese and English, reading "Disciple Guidance", "Wandering Zi Yin" and watching news are daily compulsory content.
Every day at 5:30 in the morning, the students get up to do their housework, and then line up to go to the cafeteria for breakfast, until 11 o'clock in the evening, they can "move" their tired bodies onto the high and low beds.
In June of this year, the 17-year-old Zhou Jiahao was sent to the Qunbo Inspirational School for the second time. Zhou Jiahao, who was "in the second palace", was more familiar with this place.
He told reporters that the special training school has a strict scoring system. The internal affairs are not cleanly organized, the line is not neat, and leftovers will be deducted.
Talking to each other in class, and training with small movements, 2 points will be deducted.
As long as one point is deducted, they are required to do 500 squats, 100 push-ups, and 30 laps around the playground.
If three points are deducted, they need to take the initiative to receive punishment.
"When you open the stick, you have dozens of sticks, and you don't stop until your butt is congested." Zhou Jiahao said.
In the Qunbo Encouragement School, contradicting the "instructors" and teachers is a red line.
Zhou Jiahao remembered that one afternoon, when he stood in a military posture under the scorching sun, just because his body shook, the "instructor" led the team and ordered to stand for one more hour.
Zhou Jiahao failed to suppress his anger and spoke insults at the "instructor." Naturally, the punishment was not light: Zhou Jiahao's ass hurt so much that he could not sit for several days after being beaten.
The same is true for girls.
Sun Xiaoxue recalled that in the first training after the confinement, the trainees had to bury their heads and crawl back and forth in the ten-meter-long sand. As long as there was a pause, the "instructor" stepped on the calf.
Sun Xiaoxue felt a piercing pain and collapsed in the sand, but the "instructor" did not feel pity for it. Instead, she stepped on her face and raised her foot until bruising appeared.
In the descriptions of many witnesses, violent suppression and verbal abuse are full of "reform" life, and bathing and going to the toilet must also be carried out under the supervision of life "instructors".
After the incident, several parents said in interviews that they didn't know anything about their children's living conditions in Qunbo Inspirational School, and they even looked forward to the upcoming transformation of their children.
Some trainees drink shampoo to escape
Many witnesses recalled that in Qunbo Inspirational School, many people were trying to escape.
Saturday is the time for a group bath. For Sun Xiaoxue, this is the best opportunity.
That day, when Sun Xiaoxue turned on the faucet, after a period of psychological development, she drank the shampoo.
Two hours later, the abdominal pain appeared as expected, but Sun Xiaoxue said that she did not feel fear, but secretly happy in her heart.
"Poisoning can be sent to the hospital, as long as you go out there is hope."
But Sun Xiaoxue did not expect that the school did not notify the parents, let alone send herself to the doctor for treatment.
The teacher in charge skillfully dialed the phone of the nearby village doctor, and after a simple vomiting and infusion, Sun Xiaoxue was put into the confinement room.
The summer in Guangxi is humid and sultry. The dormitories built with prefabricated houses are covered with spider webs, and small insects appear in the rice on the belly from time to time.
After living in Qunbo Encouragement School for half a year, Wang Jie became unwell, but the teacher in charge not only did not notify the parents, nor did he send him to the doctor. He was sent to a nearby clinic for treatment until Wang Jie developed a fever.
After a doctor's examination, Wang Jie suffered from a skin disease due to a large area of fungal infection.
On the night of September 13, 2021, Wang Jie and a few male students escaped through the courtyard wall together. After the plan failed, they were locked in the confinement room again.
Continuing to flee, the school has taken more severe punishment measures.
In October 2021, Qunbo Encouragement School announced a new rule: If you know the escape plan of other students and do not report it, you will face club education and three months of extra training.
As of November 14, 2021, before the Education Bureau of Xixiangtang District, Nanning City once again sealed the Qunbo Encouragement School, there were still 40 students trapped in it.
Twice ordered to shut down
On December 2 this year, a reporter from the Beijing News learned from the Education Bureau of Xixiangtang District, Nanning that the competent authority has issued a notice of revocation, requesting Qunbo Encouragement School to immediately stop illegal schooling and do a good job in dismissing and appeasing students. .
In cases involving violations of the law, they will be transferred to judicial organs for investigation and punishment in accordance with the law.
According to industry and commerce information, the registered entity of Qunbo Encouragement School is Nanning Qunbo Education Consulting Co., Ltd., which was established on February 23, 2017. Its business scope: education information consultation, psychological consultation (engaged in non-disease, non-drug psychological consultation), Accommodation services, catering services, etc., have not obtained school-running qualifications.
After being reported by students in November this year, reporters from the Beijing News called the school’s enrollment number many times, but no one answered them.
The school's previous admissions advertisements and official website are no longer accessible.
Nanning Qunbo Education Consulting Co., Ltd. was again listed as an abnormal business because the registered residence or business place could not be contacted.
On November 24, a reporter from the Beijing News contacted Han Mouxue, the principal of Qunbo Inspirational School.
Han Mouxue admitted that the school had “instructors” physically punishing students and spanking children in 2019, but had urgently organized meetings to dismiss and expel the “instructors” involved.
Han Mouxue denied the confinement and violent reforms one after another, and said that only when the students made mistakes, they would “stop and correct them in the right way”.
It is worth noting that this is not the first time that Qunbo Encouragement School has been ordered to close down.
Yang Hualiang, deputy director of the Education Bureau of Xixiangtang District, also confirmed to reporters that as early as 2019 and 2020, the above-mentioned institutions were ordered to rectify and revoke because they did not obtain the corresponding school-running qualifications.
Mentioning the two closures mentioned above, Han Mouxue explained, “It turned out that we had a business license, but we did not obtain a school permit, so we stopped running the school.”
It is worth noting that Qunbo Encouragement School "resurrected" every time after being seized.
In this regard, Han Mouxue said that it was because “the child needs us, and parents continue to consult us later. We couldn’t bear to see this situation and we opened the business again. But we also kept submitting materials to obtain school permits. ."
Transform the "trap"
A reporter from the Beijing News learned that youth "correction" institutions like Qunbo Encouragement School, by amplifying parents' obsession with "correction" of Internet addiction, school-weariness, and premature love, charge high fees for profit, behind it is the same transformation. "trap".
"With a strong sense of social responsibility and a tireless spirit of fraternity, we help teenagers with abnormal behaviors to return to normal..." This is the slogan on the official website of Qunbo Inspirational School. Li Wen's mother said that she was "tempted" by seeing this place. .
Many parents said that they saw the school's official website through the pop-up window when they were looking up the internet addiction withdrawal method on the website.
In the subsequent telephone consultation, the admissions staff promised that through closed military training, the child's bad habits can be corrected in a short period of time and he can return to school.
For ordinary families like Li Wen, a training fee of more than 30,000 yuan per semester is not a small sum, but Li Wen’s parents still like to grab a life-saving straw and sign up immediately.
Zhang Mouli, who once worked as a Chinese teacher in Qunbo Encouragement School, told the Beijing News reporter that the school’s enrollment method is basically completed online. In addition to pop-up advertisements, professional and technical personnel will be asked to link the school website with "disobedience" and "Internet addiction." The words "puppy love", "rebellious", and "squandering" are related to each other.
When parents search for these keywords, there is a high probability that they will be directed to the school's official website.
When parents call for consultation, the staff will repeatedly pack tickets to ensure that the child is successfully "corrected".
After discussing with the parents, the school will ask to pay a deposit first, including the transportation fee and 50% of the training fee.
Except for a very small number of students who came to the school voluntarily, most of them were "cheated" or "tied" after the school and their parents discussed it together.
The enrollment staff of Qunbo Encouragement Education School is essentially a sales staff, who can get a 25%-40% commission from each trainee’s training fee.
The driver and others in charge of the shuttle will also receive a labor fee of 300 to 400 yuan after completing the task.
Zhang Mouli said that most of the people who work in the Qunbo Encouragement School are relatives or friends of the boss, in order to prevent employees from "shaking" the school situation when they leave.
"Instructors" often require good physical fitness, courage, and ruthlessness.
Those in charge of cultural teaching are generally university students, and only one part-time teacher holds a teacher qualification certificate.
"The role of a psychology teacher is to give children psychological counseling after they have experienced long-term physical punishment and violent beatings, and to further control their children's thoughts." Zhang Mouli said that none of the three psychology teachers working in the school have adolescents. Psychological counseling qualification certificate, but also insufficient professional knowledge of psychology.
Difficulties of obtaining evidence in illegal detention
In the eyes of those who have witnessed it, the measures taken by Qunbo Encouragement School to "close small black houses" for students started every week and were suspected of illegal detention.
In addition, Article 15 of the Law on the Protection of Minors also clearly stipulates that the teaching staff of schools and kindergartens "must not impose corporal punishment, disguised corporal punishment or other acts that insult human dignity on underage students and children."
However, there are disagreements between the school and students and parents on this issue.
The principal Han Mouxue said that some children are too aggressive and will attack teachers and "instructors" and provoke each other. Therefore, "closing a small black room" is an important teaching method. The cognition of obedience cannot be regarded as illegal detention.
For such illegally-running correctional institutions, the guardianship transfer contract is the most effective means to "avoid risks."
According to the parents of witnesses, before each minor student enrolls in school, Qunbo Encouragement School signs the "Minor Guardianship Transfer Agreement" with the parent.
The agreement shows that while the students are in school, the parents voluntarily entrust all their guardianship duties to the Qunbo Education Consulting Company. The school will arrange for learning, life, training, etc., and both parties shall jointly bear the corresponding legal consequences for civil actions.
However, when the student leaves the school, the school will destroy this agreement, leaving only a disclaimer.
Although the "General Rules of Civil Law" does not provide detailed rules for the transfer of guardianship, Article 22 of the "Opinions on the Application of the "General Rules of Civil Law of the People's Republic of China" issued by the Supreme People's Court states: Or entrust all of them to others" to affirm the legality of the transfer of guardianship.
Zhang Cheng, a lawyer who once represented similar cases, said that the existing cases of abuse of care recipients are basically aimed at infants, young children, the elderly, and the disabled who are unable to take care of themselves.
Since students at school are generally considered to be capable, it is very rare to be filed for this crime.
A case investigator who asked not to be named told the Beijing News that although the institution involved may constitute a crime of illegal detention, there are still huge objectivity difficulties in investigating and collecting evidence.
The investigating officer stated that the review period from acceptance to filing is generally 3 to 7 days.
However, because students are generally far away from the injury time, it is impossible to conduct injury inspection and evidence collection, and it is difficult to find problematic images when they are called for monitoring.
There is neither a valid injury report nor videos or photos. Many students involved are reluctant to talk about their own experiences, so they cannot be accepted as criminal cases.
When relevant departments investigate and deal with them, they generally carry out law enforcement from the perspective of illegally running schools.
A reporter from the Beijing News found that many organizations claiming to be able to provide "corrective" services are still active on the Internet.
To this day, there are still parents who firmly believe that even though they have been beaten, the changes in their children are real.
(In the text, Li Wen, Sun Xiaoxue, and Wang Jie are pseudonyms)
A12-A13 edition writing/Beijing News reporter Xian Yunzhen