Dad handcuffs himself to daughter

Dad handcuffs himself to daughter

He is afraid of losing her in CNY crowd in railway station

The Chinese New Year travel rush is on in China.

The holiday season will see about 2.8 billion trips being made across the country.

But one father stood out among the millions of people returning to their hometowns.

Identified as Mr Wang, he was seen handcuffed to his daughter at Beijing's South Railway Station as they headed home for the celebrations, reported The Telegraph.

The pictures showed the six-year-old girl slouched in a railway station chair, handcuffed to her father by the left wrist.

Netizens were quick to praise the father, the report said.

"They were talking and laughing so I figured the man was not a trafficker," wrote a traveller who spotted them on Weibo, China's version of Twitter, alongside photos of the pair.

"It was really strange!" the Weibo user said.

"But I was touched by (the father's) words. 'Only by being handcuffed to my daughter, can I stop worrying'."

Wrote another Weibo user: "He did the right thing. A responsible father."

The man had chosen to travel attached to his daughter because of "security concerns", according to the China News Service agency.

He feared his daughter, who has a lazy eye, might get lost in the heaving crowds and get abducted by child traffickers.

Wearing a pair of Hello Kitty tracksuit bottoms, the girl also sported a GPS watch capable of tracking her movements and a necklace with her name and father's mobile phone number written on it.

LOGISTICAL NIGHTMARE

China's annual travel rush officially began on Wednesday as millions of people set off for their family homes to celebrate Chinese New Year, which falls on Feb 19. The date also marks the beginning of the Year of the Goat.

The 40-day travel rush lasts until March 16 when workers begin to return home.

This is typically a logistical nightmare for the country.

During the so-called "spring travel" period, more than 10 million passengers are expected to pass through Shanghai's two airports, the Shanghai Daily reported.


This article was first published on February 07, 2015.
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