Tracking Control
"Not Our Business"
Four years after the “chained woman” case, another incident from the same region highlights the lack of progress in protecting vulnerable women.
October 16, 2026
Last month, the case of Sun Meihua (孫美華) shocked China before her name vanished from the internet. The 58-year-old Beijing native was discovered in a village in Cao County, Shandong Province, by Douyin vlogger Chuxin (初心). Footage showed her frail and hungry, eating a plate of noodles Chuxin had brought her.
Sun had been diagnosed with schizophrenia and had gone missing in August 2000 after her husband allegedly abandoned her at an intersection near her parents' home, according to independent media outlet Free Nora (自由娜拉), which monitors human trafficking and abuse against minorities in China. Another outlet, The Aquarian (水瓶紀元), reported that her family attempted to report her disappearance, but the police refused to open a case.
Sun was living with an elderly man known as "Uncle Long" (龍叔) in the village. In August, villagers told Du Xiaohua (杜小华), another Douyin vlogger who encountered Sun, that Uncle Long abused her and forced her into prostitution. When Du attempted to file a report with the police, an officer responded, "We haven't found any evidence of abuse, and relocating her is not our business," according to Free Nora's reporting.
A Familiar Story
Before media outlets could extensively report, Chinese social media platforms erupted with discussions about Sun Meihua's case. Data from Wisers, a media monitoring database, revealed dozens to hundreds of posts about Sun daily between September 8 and 11, peaking at 345 posts on September 9. However, the posts soon disappeared, either deleted or blocked for violating platform rules.
Free Nora became the first Chinese media outlet to report on Sun’s case on September 18. They encouraged readers to continue paying attention to the case and sharing information on social media. The Aquarian (水瓶紀元) followed on September 26, but its report was deleted. No other significant Chinese media coverage was identified. Douyin vloggers also removed all videos related to Sun.
This case echoes a similar incident in 2022 involving Xiaohuamei, later known as the "chained woman." After videos of a woman chained to a shed in Fengxian County, Jiangsu Province, circulated online, local officials initially denied trafficking claims and blamed her condition on mental illness. Local authorities later identified her as Xiaohuamei from Yunnan and arrested her husband for illegal detention.
Both cases highlight a troubling trend. Sun was found in Cao County, an area identified by researchers as a trafficking "hotspot." Court judgments made public in 2024 reveal that most victims of human trafficking are rural women with mental or intellectual disabilities.