FBI’s low efficiency in finding missing visiting scholar angers Chinese
Some people in China have expressed concerns and anger about overseas students’ safety after the US police failed to find a visiting Chinese scholar who had gone missing for 18 days.
The FBI announced on Tuesday that they had found the car, which Zhang Yingying, a visiting scholar at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ( UIUC), was last seen taking when she went missing on June 9, media reported.
The FBI said on June 17 that they are offering a $ 10,000 reward for information that helps to find Zhang, US media reported.
However, the whereabouts of Zhang remain a mystery until now.
Many Chinese netizens questioned why the FBI has failed to solve the case so far.
“The FBI was just able to find the car even with the help of the surveillance camera? It looks like that the FBI is only FBI in the US TV series,” said Sina Weibo user “tejingsir.”
Zhang’s case has also triggered heated discussion in China on students’ safety, with many parents who are planning to send their children to study in the US saying they will “reconsider their decision.”
The US Embassy in China told the Global Times previously that “a safe environment for all students is a top priority for school administrators in the US. Instances of violence on campuses in the US are very rare.”
“I was considering to send my children to the US before Zhang’s case. But now I have ruled the US out of my list because it is not safe, for example, the country has no gun control,” a parent in Southwest China’s Yunnan Province told the Global Times.
Zhang’s family arrived in the US on June 17 where they met with the authorities and university officials.
“Once my daughter is found, I will never let her visit the US again,” Yingying’s father, Zhang Ronggao was quoted by the Beijing Youth Daily as saying.
UIUC Police said previously on its Facebook page that the surveillance camera recorded Zhang standing on the street when the Saturn Astra pulled up beside her.
More than 300,000 Chinese students and scholars are studying in the US universities currently, the People’s Daily reported in June.
Nineteen days after Chinese student Zhang Yingying went missing from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign ( UIUC), the FBI announced a breakthrough that the car related to her disappearance was found. The whereabouts of Zhang is still unknown.
The FBI’s breakthrough brings little comfort. The fate of the missing woman has caused grief to the Chinese public. As people pray for Zhang’s safe return, they raised questions over the slow progress of the US police investigation. Zhang was last seen on a surveillance video getting into a black Saturn Astra in Urbana on June 9. There are reportedly only a few thousand black Saturn Astras in the US, but it took the police nearly 20 days to trace the suspect car. Zhang didn’t go missing in a no- go zone. The reportedly cautious woman disappeared on her way to sign a lease with a housing agent not far from the campus, supposedly a safe place for students.
The FBI has indicated that the case is a national priority for the agency. However, the way this case is being processed and the progress being made so far suggests more attention should be given to it.
Zhang’s father, now in the US for the search, told US media that the family trusts the police and that they won’t leave without finding her. Her father’s emotional appeal broke people’s hearts. As time drags on, it is increasingly questionable whether the US police are performing their duties effi ciently and whether US universities are well equipped to protect the safety of their students.
The case and the way the police are handling it will defi nitely have a psychological impact on Chinese students now studying in the US and those who have similar plans in the future. There are more than 300,000 Chinese students living in the US. UIUC is one of the American uni- versities highly favored by Chinese students. They choose to study in the US not just for quality education, but also for the environment. But now safety has become a serious concern for them.
The US crowns itself as the world’s top cop, poking its nose everywhere. The FBI also reportedly runs a massive surveillance program for national security. But when a lovely young woman goes missing in broad daylight, the US police’s capability in pursuing this case is disappointing. Chinese authorities should raise their concerns and exert pressure on US police.
Last week, Otto Warmbier, a 23- year- old American student, died one week after being released by North Korea. What he went through in North Korea has enraged his family and American public. We hope Zhang’s fate will be better than Warmbier’s.