Rickshaw cyclist Chen Chuanliu can't afford daycare so he has to think of a way to prevent his 2-year-old son from wandering off on his own when he has a fare.
His solution? Chain him up on a pole!
The rickshaw cyclist, from the Chinese capital Beijing, decided to put tot Lao Lu under lock and key after his four-year-old daughter Ling went missing last month.
Child snatching is rife in China where strict laws govern the size of families.
"My wife is ill and I can't stop work. So I chain him to a pole when I have a fare. It seems harsh but it is better than losing him," said Chen.
The problem is that he's probably training the kid to think like Houdini: http://austriantimes.at/news/Around_the_World/2010-02-03/20278/Unlocky_boy
http://www.tange.be/fietskinderzitjes.htm
That said, it also depends on where you live. People in the countryside are often allowed to have more than one child with little or no harassment from anyone. This is probably because it's easier to run a farm if you have more children around to work for you. If you live in the city, you can expect to be scrutinised by everyone.
I wonder, though, why his daughter was stolen and why... That's so sad.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1248696/No-chains-Jingdan-Kindergarten-offers-poverty-stricken-Chinese-father-years-free-childcare.html
@cola: In Shanghai, if both parents come from one child families, they can have another baby. I'm not sure for the rest of China. Also, remember than China is vast and laws are difficult to apply. It is not uncommon to see migrant workers i.e. people that come from inner China to the big coastal cities that have 2 toddlers with them.