Singer's son detained over Beijing gang rape
Li Guanfeng, the 17-year-old son of famous military singer Li Shuangjing, was detained Thursday with four others for their alleged involvement in the gang rape of a woman on February 17 in Beijing. Li Guanfeng and four others allegedly took their victim to a hotel after drinking at a Haidian district bar and forced her to have sex with them, the Xinhua News Agency reported. Li's father is a general and dean of the music department of the People's Liberation Army Academy of Arts. Li Guanfeng made headlines under a previous name, Li Tianyi, after he severely injured a couple in 2011, for which he served one year of re-education through labor. Li Guanfeng, who was educated at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China and Shattuck-St. Mary's, a boarding school in the US state of Minnesota, became the subject of intense scrutiny of Weibo after details of his alleged crime surfaced. Rather than dismissing the case as another scandal involving a spoilt princeling, some pundits accused the US of corrupting Li's morals.
@Yang Jinling (media commentator): He learned piano at 4 and calligraphy at 8 from masters of those fields, winning countless prizes. He joined the national ice hockey team at 10, was enrolled at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University of China and has a US education. He has received prestigious art, academic and sport educations, yet lacks ethics and morality. Li is a typical product of the Chinese style of education, but isn't and will never be the only one.
@Wang Xiaodong (patriotic scholar, author): Li has a US education, which possibly overwhelmed him. The US is never short of rapists and murderers.
@Xinhua (opinion section): Barbarians eat the enemies once they have caught them, but civilized men would never do this. There are no evil men in this world, only evil actions. Li Guanfeng should take legal responsibility for his [alleged] involvement in the rape, but being a juvenile he is also a victim of a twisted education. Wave your clenched fists, but have sympathetic hearts.
@Yipaitianji: I discussed this issue with a middle school principal, who believed boys should not live on campus. They should be restricted and educated by their parents. Once they live with other teens, most of their time is spent discussing sex, which can influence their lives. Li Shuangjiang failed his son in his education by sending him to the US.
@Zhang Wen (editorial board member with China News Weekly): Many people have criticized the Chinese style of education in the wake of Li's scandal, which is something I will never agree with. The Chinese style of education has many faults, but on this issue it should not be blamed. How can the Chinese style of education, which demands individuals keep firmly on the rails, be blamed for Li's strong character and bad behavior? The fault lies with his family education: he was spoilt.