33 kids abandoned at Guangzhou baby hatch over Spring Festival

A recently opened Guangzhou baby hatch – where parents can drop off unwanted children anonymously, Victorian-style – saw 33 infants abandoned there over Spring Festival.

According to the Jianghua Times, most of the babies dropped off at the hatch, located in the Guangzhou Social Welfare Institute, suffer from diseases or birth abnormalities such as a cleft palate. The youngest abandoned child was just two days old, and the oldest five years (!). 

Of the 33 dropped off, 22 of the babies were boys and 11 girls. Two of the children had to be taken to hospital for medical care, while the others were taken in by the welfare institute. 

The institute currently has over 2,100 babies in its care, both those abandoned at the hatch and given into care by a parent, despite only having around a thousand beds. 

[Image via ECNS // Via The Nanfang]