“My Father is the Mayor!” shouted Ma Wencong as he tried to escape from an angry crowd in his 200-thousand dollar Mercedes Benz. That’s after he had assaulted a shopkeeper’s baby. This incident is one of several, of when children of rich and powerful Chinese try to use connections, even fake connections, to get out of trouble.
Ma is actually the son of a local businessman—not the mayor. On September 18th, he knocked over an advertising sign with his car, had a confrontation with a storekeeper and threw a calculator at her daughter’s head—an 18-month-old baby.
When Ma attempted to escape, a passer by, Wu Xiaodan tried to stop him. Ma then ran over Wu with his car and broke the man’s leg.
Ten people surrounded the car to restrain Ma. That’s when Ma claimed to be the son of the mayor, trying to scare them into letting him go. When police first arrived on the scene they left after determining he was not driving drunk. The crowd was outraged and massed to about 100 people, who demanded further blood tests on Ma. Police eventually arrested him over four hours after the attack.
The incident in Wenzhou is not the first of it’s kind. In October 2010, 22-year-old Li Qiming was involved in a hit and run accident that killed one person. When confronted by crowds Li shouted: “Sue me if you dare, my father is Li Gang.” The only difference is Li Qiming’s father really was Li Gang, a local high-ranking police officer. After public outrage Li eventually ended up with a 6-year prison sentence.
Former China Private Economy Magazine reporter, Liu Yiming, says this behavior is common among children of the rich and powerful in China.
[Liu Yiming, Former China Magazine Reporter]:
“Children of the powerful and influential have also become arrogant. They feel that if they have power and money they can do whatever they want.”
Li Bochun, head of the Chinese Cultural Renaissance Institute, says these incidents are part of a wider phenomenon.
[Li Bochun, Chinese Cultural Renaissance Institute]:
“The second generation of an official’s family or a wealthy family, those born after the year 1990, the majority of them lack moral education, or legal education, so of course they lack compassion. It’s only because of this that this phenomenon exists, actually we really need a return to morality.”
Ma Wencong is now in custody at Wenzhou’s Lucheng District police station. So far, there’s no word on what charges he will face.
From - http://english.ntdtv.com/ntdtv_en/news_china/2011-09-20/-my-father-is-the-mayor-incident-highlights-behavior-of-china-s-rich-youth.html
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