Society has responsibility to care for elderly

An elderly Chinese woman rests in a wheelchair at the Temple of Heaven park in Beijing, June 5, 2015.[Photo/IC]

AN ELDERLY WOMAN, about 80 years old, in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality was reported to be wearing a chain on her foot. While many called her family cruel, her daughter-in-law said that they had no other choice. She said her mother-in-law kept walking off and getting lost and there was no one in the family who could be with her during the day. Beijing Youth Daily comments:

It is, of course, inappropriate and immoral to chain the old woman's foot. Yet what makes the story even more tragic is there appears to be no other option－if her family lets her leave home freely, the old lady will continue to get lost, and one day might never come back.

Some blame the old woman's family, claiming they should find another way to stop her from getting lost. For example, some suggest, one of her sons could quit his job and take care of her 24 hours a day. Perhaps one of them could, but that would put a heavier financial burden on the whole family, including the woman herself, and might cause even more problems.

To prevent such a tragedy requires the efforts not only of the family, but also of the whole of society. The news report said the woman walked far away from home because she felt lonely, had no friends and no place to spend her spare time. That's the problem faced by many senior citizens and the woman in Chongqing is only an extreme example.

What if more old age community centers are built where seniors can socialize? When they have a place to make friends and talk with each other, they will no longer need to search far and wide for companionship.

Besides, when the woman walked far away from home, her family worried about her safety. More volunteers are needed to offer assistance to elderly residents who get lost.

China has already become an aged society. According to official data, the number of citizens aged 60 or above had reached 210 million by 2014, or 15.5 percent of the whole population. The number might reach 400 million by 2035. It is time we offered more care to senior members of our society.