On May 5, Chinese anti-human trafficking volunteer Shang Guanzheng once again reported to the Chongqing health department that multiple illegal surrogate mothers were using fake identification to give birth at the Angel Maternity Hospital and successfully obtain birth certificates. The day before, just one hour after he reported a specific case, the pregnant woman suspected of being involved in surrogacy was discharged from the hospital, leading to speculation online that someone had alerted her.
In the afternoon of May 4, a journalist from a mainland media outlet accompanied Shang Guanzheng to Room 811 of the hospital and saw a woman suspected to be a surrogate mother. According to information provided by an intermediary, the woman’s real name is Jiang but she checked into the hospital using the identity of a client named Liu and underwent a caesarean section to give birth to a son on May 1.
In the hospital room, besides the pregnant woman, there was a maternity matron taking care of a male infant, accompanied by a woman who claimed to be the pregnant woman’s “close friend”. The pregnant woman mistook Shang Guanzheng for a hospital leader and introduced herself as giving birth by caesarean section on May 1 and preparing to leave the hospital on May 5.
The “close friend” became suspicious of Shang Guanzheng’s identity, and after some questioning, she left the hospital room and did not return.
After revealing his identity, Shang Guanzheng talked to the pregnant woman. She claimed she couldn’t remember the last four digits of her ID number. Shang Guanzheng asked her if her name was Jiang, but she denied it, saying, “I changed my name and ID after divorcing last year, I am Liu now.”
Shang Guanzheng further inquired if the baby next to her was from surrogacy, to which the pregnant woman remained silent initially and later said, “No, I don’t know.”
When Shang Guanzheng asked to see her ID, the woman searched her bag and claimed her colleague had taken it. She referred to the woman who claimed to be her “close friend” as her colleague but couldn’t recall her colleague’s name.
Following this, Shang Guanzheng reported the situation to the hospital, and the hospital manager Jiang stated they would investigate, emphasizing that strict verification procedures are in place for patients’ identities upon admission and such incidents should not happen.
During the interaction, Jiang received a call from a woman instructing her not to say anything and claiming ignorance. Shang Guanzheng offered to seek police assistance, but Jiang insisted on the need for evidence to report to the police. Eventually, Jiang requested the security to escort the journalist and his team out.
At 4:30 PM, Shang Guanzheng reported to the Chongqing Health Commission and the Yubei District Health Commission separately. The Yubei District Health Commission mentioned that enforcement officers would be sent to the hospital, but due to it being a holiday period, there would be a delay in their arrival.
In the evening at 7 PM, journalists met two enforcement officers from the Yubei District Health Commission at the hospital and provided them with the relevant information. One officer mentioned that due to job responsibilities, they were not specialized personnel and would need to report to their superiors before assigning appropriate personnel to support the investigation.
On May 5 morning, journalists contacted the Yubei District Health Commission in their capacity as whistleblowers, and the commission informed them that when enforcement officers went to the hospital, they found out that the pregnant woman had already been discharged at 5:30 PM on May 4. Copies of the pregnant woman’s details kept by the hospital were secured for evidence, but with the woman gone, further action may require involving the police.
Some netizens raised suspicions of someone tipping off the pregnant women. At noon that day, officials from the Yubei District Health Commission in Chongqing responded to mainland media, stating that the whistleblower’s information was being strictly kept confidential, and they were investigating the issues raised by netizens.
Shang Guanzheng later posted on May 5 urging the relevant authorities in Chongqing to thoroughly investigate several issues, including whether certain individuals deliberately facilitated the escape of the pregnant women, how fake IDs passed the hospital’s facial recognition, the extent of such cases in the hospital, and if birth certificates issued by the hospital whitewashed the identities of abducted children. He questioned why such illicit activities persisted at the hospital without being detected by supervisory bodies.
The previous day, Shang Guanzheng had also posted on Weibo emphasizing his focus on surrogacy due to the underlying illegal activities such as selling birth certificates and babies.