Education For Life – a tragedy, not a story
21 years ago, in September 1992, Zhu Ling, a vivacious Beijing girl, started her college life in Tsinghua university, arguably the best University in China. Two and half years later, on April 28 1995, the girl was confirmed a victim of Thallium poisoning, lying in ICU ward unconsciously after suffering excruciating pains. She was the subject of a murder case. The date happens to be the official anniversary of Tsinghua university, an important day for all alumni to thank the institution for their education.
18 years have gone by and Zhu Ling is still alive, only barely. She became paralyzed completely with permanent nerve and digestive system damages. She is now a 40 years old blind woman with IQ equivalent to a 7 years’ old, her good looks, memories and talents are all gone. For more of Zhu Ling’s current situation, check out this YouTube video made by volunteers (http://youtu.be/nJEdupyI97c). Her parents have been fighting against all odds, hanging on the only hope that one day, the murderer will be brought to justice.
And it has turned out to be a group of murderers most likely. The email hacking of the primary suspect in year 2006 has provided an essential twist, in which she-who-cannot-be-named led the conversation with a group of girls, most of them shared the dorm with Zhu Ling back then. The conversation was about how to divert the public attention without leaving any evidence for Zhu Ling’s friends and family, in case some day they will have to face court. The girls exchanged action plans and even jokes, as if they were working on a final year project.
The primary suspect had the motive, the reach to the deadly chemical, the chance to drop the doze - for twice as confirmed by technical analyses, she was suspiciously involved in the theft of Zhu Ling’s personal belongings, and was summoned for police questioning in year 1997. The case against this primary suspect had been however mystically closed due to undisclosed reasons, while it is public knowledge that she came from a prestigious and powerful family, with strong political connections reaching to the members of politburo.
Year 2013, it was time again for Tsinghua-ers to celebrate the institution's glory and achievements, little wonder that there is no place for Zhu Ling. Netizens however, has launched a frenzy propaganda: “the human flesh search”, to locate the group of suspects who have unveiled themselves in the hacked emails. Surprisingly Zhu was hated by this group for making the following unforgivable mistakes: returning dorm too late, making too much noise, and consuming hot water from other's thermal flasks. The group had arguably then came to the decision of adding a special ingredient into Zhu's education, Thallium.
For myself and many others about the same age of Zhu Ling, the cruelty of her fate is many folded: that young (and supposedly intelligent) girls could take other's life so lightly, that they have refused to repine, that people involved - and there are quite a number of them - have all been muted by the “system”, that the omnipotent “system” has been backing up the accused murderers as if they were a group of heroes.
“Thank you all for not killing me” has since become the social norm to greet our ex-classmates over social media across mainland China. Unlike Zhu Ling, we have survived the education system. Together with her, we are calling for the re-opening of investigation, the date of judgment, the final truth. Until that day comes, never ever forget Zhu Ling.
18 years have gone by and Zhu Ling is still alive, only barely. She became paralyzed completely with permanent nerve and digestive system damages. She is now a 40 years old blind woman with IQ equivalent to a 7 years’ old, her good looks, memories and talents are all gone. For more of Zhu Ling’s current situation, check out this YouTube video made by volunteers (http://youtu.be/nJEdupyI97c). Her parents have been fighting against all odds, hanging on the only hope that one day, the murderer will be brought to justice.
And it has turned out to be a group of murderers most likely. The email hacking of the primary suspect in year 2006 has provided an essential twist, in which she-who-cannot-be-named led the conversation with a group of girls, most of them shared the dorm with Zhu Ling back then. The conversation was about how to divert the public attention without leaving any evidence for Zhu Ling’s friends and family, in case some day they will have to face court. The girls exchanged action plans and even jokes, as if they were working on a final year project.
The primary suspect had the motive, the reach to the deadly chemical, the chance to drop the doze - for twice as confirmed by technical analyses, she was suspiciously involved in the theft of Zhu Ling’s personal belongings, and was summoned for police questioning in year 1997. The case against this primary suspect had been however mystically closed due to undisclosed reasons, while it is public knowledge that she came from a prestigious and powerful family, with strong political connections reaching to the members of politburo.
Year 2013, it was time again for Tsinghua-ers to celebrate the institution's glory and achievements, little wonder that there is no place for Zhu Ling. Netizens however, has launched a frenzy propaganda: “the human flesh search”, to locate the group of suspects who have unveiled themselves in the hacked emails. Surprisingly Zhu was hated by this group for making the following unforgivable mistakes: returning dorm too late, making too much noise, and consuming hot water from other's thermal flasks. The group had arguably then came to the decision of adding a special ingredient into Zhu's education, Thallium.
For myself and many others about the same age of Zhu Ling, the cruelty of her fate is many folded: that young (and supposedly intelligent) girls could take other's life so lightly, that they have refused to repine, that people involved - and there are quite a number of them - have all been muted by the “system”, that the omnipotent “system” has been backing up the accused murderers as if they were a group of heroes.
“Thank you all for not killing me” has since become the social norm to greet our ex-classmates over social media across mainland China. Unlike Zhu Ling, we have survived the education system. Together with her, we are calling for the re-opening of investigation, the date of judgment, the final truth. Until that day comes, never ever forget Zhu Ling.
