Chinese students abroad: Safety is the priority after murders overseas

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‍They want a totally different experience, so they pack up and leave their sweet homes.

They travel afar to strange countries, from the neighbors of Japan and South Korea to the United States and Canada, the other side of the world.

The flow of Chinese students overseas was once depicted as "a flood," yet that skyrocketing trend is now slowing down due to safety concerns.

Chinese graduates at Columbia University in New York, U.S. /Xinhua Photo

More and more students abroad are feeling their security is threatened, according to a report published by the Center for China and Globalization, especially after the series of devastating cases in recent years.

30+ incidents since 2016

Since 2016, over 30 cases of Chinese students getting murdered, kidnapped or sexually assaulted in a foreign country have been reported by the media. Shocking enough, the victims' average age lies below 25 years old.

Famous cases include the murder of Shao Tong in Iowa, U.S., in 2014 (suspect received life sentence after 21 months), the murder of Jiang Ge in Tokyo, Japan, in 2016 (suspect sentenced to 20 years behind bars after 13 months), and the kidnap of Zhang Yingying in Illinois, U.S., in 2017 (still under investigation after 22 months, latest trial date set in June).

So why does it take so long?

Take the Shao Tong case as an example. Shao was found dead in September 2014 in Iowa City, Iowa, days after the suspect, also her then-boyfriend and Chinese national, Li Xiangnan, fled the U.S. and went back to his home country.

Li was sentenced after 655 days to life in prison in Wenzhou, China.

No extradition treaty between the U.S. and China

There is little precedent for an international criminal case like this when a Chinese national kills another Chinese on the U.S. soil and the suspect is long gone before police uncover the murder.

Under Chinese extradition law, China does not allow extradition of its own citizens. Thus, Li would have to be prosecuted in China. Yet with all the evidence staying on the other side of the world, the investigation would start off slowly.

In June 2015, a group of Chinese investigators traveled some 6,500 miles to Iowa hoping to bring back some evidence that would prevail justice, yet at first, there were some "trust issues" between the two sides.

"When they (Chinese investigators) initially came, we were concerned about security and things like that,” Iowa's Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness told the Iowa City Press-Citizen. “We initially locked our cellphones in our cars, in our offices, did not even take them with us."

The Iowa City daily newspaper also reported that Iowa City officials were “reluctant to fully share their evidence,” as they were handing off the only shot at prosecuting Li.

"There's just something about us turning over evidence to a place where we're never going to see it again and you'll never get it back. And we didn't know how their system in China worked as far as bringing him to justice, and there were just a lot of unknowns. So, yeah, it was a very difficult thing for us, to let go of that evidence," Iowa City police investigator Andy Rich told the newspaper.

Trust should not be an issue

Professor Huang Feng, director of the Institute for International Criminal Law, Beijing Normal University, pointed out the lack of experience would culminate with a longer prosecution time.

"China and the United States have signed criminal judicial assistance agreements, which detail information with regards to investigation and evidence acquirement. The mentioned (reluctance to trust each other) situation shows that both the Chinese and the American prosecutors have not fully utilized the exact clauses and mechanisms of those agreements. Also because they had a lack of experiences, lack of trust."

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Once they get more familiar with each other's prosecuting process, the investigating process should be much easier to put forth, said Professor Huang.

Another thing that may prolong the investigation, according to Professor Zhu Zheng with the China University of Political Science and Law, is the rules that both sides need to follow both internally and externally.

“When it comes to international law, there is a principle of reciprocity,” Professor Zhu told CGTN.

"That means if the Wenzhou court ruling this case wants evidence obtained by Iowa authorities, they would have to submit requests to the Intermediate Court. From there, to the High Court, then the Supreme Court, and then to the Foreign Ministry. The Foreign Ministry then sends the request to the Chinese Embassy in the U.S. and once the request is received by America, they would have to do the same top-down process as well."

'Even the closest people to us can be dangerous'

Cecilia Kha, a junior now studying at Ryerson University in Canada, said cases like Shao's murder scare her.

"It worries us, even the closest people to us can be dangerous," she said. "Everyone can be a victim at the end of the day."

CGTN hit the road in Canada and spoke with students there. See what they had to say...

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Winnie Cao, a freshman at Western University in Canada, said the university should take up more responsibilities in promoting international students' safety.

"It's better if they (the university) bring more police around the school,” Cao said. "Also (the school can) increase the safety level by setting up more CCTV cameras. Stuff like that may help a lot."

Schools are stepping up.

Iowa State University, which Shao attended, has expanded its security services. “Her tragic death was an incredibly sad time for all of us,” Annette Hacker, director of News Service, told CGTN in an email interview.

According to the school's official website, besides the Safe Ride services (from 6 p.m. to 5:30 a.m.), they've now launched a free mobile app called ISU Guardian, which serves as a “virtual escort” and directly links to the emergency calls.

Safety is priority

The American Midwest is believed to be a safe, bucolic setting for many internationals. One in 10 students is Chinese at Iowa State University and the University of Iowa, the state's two major institutions of higher education.

Officials are hoping international students feel a sense of safety.

"The one clear message I wanted to send is, I don't care where you're from. If something horrible happens to you like that... no matter what it takes, we are not going to stop," Iowa City police investigator David Gonzalez told the Iowa City Press-Citizen following Li's prosecution.

China is the largest source of international students in the U.S. (accounting for nearly 35 percent of all international students), providing vital income to American universities and contributing to the economy.

For Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Cui Tiankai, those young Chinese overseas students are also "the true ambassadors for friendship and understanding between our two peoples."

Yet, while the U.S. remains the top destination for Chinese students, the annual growth rate is slowing and the number choosing to stay overseas post-graduation has fallen dramatically over the past decade.

Personal safety concerns aren't the only factor behind these trends, but are significant: A sense of security is critical to keeping the people-to-people bridge strong.