The tragic story of Li Xuemei, a 41-year-old mother from Guangdong province in southern China, has touched the hearts of millions on social media. Li passed away from lung cancer on August 19, leaving behind an unfulfilled wish to reunite with her son, who was abducted in 2015.
Li’s son, Liu Jiazhu, was taken at the age of five while playing with a friend near their rural home, just a day before the Mid-Autumn Festival. Li, who was working in another city to support her family and care for her younger daughter diagnosed with autism, learned of her son’s abduction in a heartbreaking phone call to her husband. From that moment on, she and her husband, Liu Dongping, began a tireless search for their missing boy.
The couple’s efforts were relentless. They distributed hundreds of thousands of missing person posters across China, even venturing as far as the northeastern regions of the country. They also registered their DNA with the police in hopes of finding a match through China’s anti-abduction DNA system, established in 2009. The system, bolstered by the 2021 Reunion Campaign, has successfully reunited many lost children with their families, but tragically, the same luck did not find Li and her son.
In July, just a month before her death, Li posted a heartfelt video on her Douyin account, “Looking for Liu Jiazhu,” where she shared the devastating news that her cancer had advanced and spread to her bones. In her final message to her son, she wrote, “Jiazhu, mum won’t see you again. I’m sorry.”
Her story is a poignant reminder of the enduring pain and struggle faced by families torn apart by abductions. Despite her terminal illness, Li never gave up hope, even divorcing her husband to avoid being a further burden on him as he cared for his paralysed father and hearing-impaired mother, all while continuing to search for their son.
After Li’s passing, Liu vowed to continue the search for their son to honor her last wish. His dedication to fulfilling her dream, despite the overwhelming challenges, has deeply resonated with many, sparking widespread sympathy and support across China. Li Xuemei’s story is a heartbreaking testament to a mother’s undying love and the tragic consequences of child abduction.
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