Shock therapy for Internet addiction halted

The Beijing News
July 14, 2009

The use of shock therapy to treat cases of Internet addiction has been suspended by the Minstry of Health, The Beijing News reports.

In May, the Linyi Fourth People's Hospital's came under fire after an article published in the China Youth Daily revealed that the hospital had been using electric shock therapy to treat Internet addiction. Yesterday, the Ministry of Health ordered a stop to the practice, stating that the treatment's safety has not been proven.

Yang Shuyun, a hospital official, replied that the hospital had already stopped using the treatment in response to intense media pressure.

Out in Urumqi, police "resolutely stopped a violent incident around a hospital by the Jiefang South Road. Two suspects were shot dead, while a third was injured." The Beijing News:

The police, affiliated with the Public Security Bureau of Tianshan District, were patroling the street when they encountered three Uighur men armed with weapons including a long knife and a club chasing after and attacking another Uighur man. The police met with violent resistance when they approached the suspects. Warning shots were fired but the suspects refused to submit, and two were killed. The injured one was sent to the hospital to be treated.
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Jiefang South Road was one of the areas where the heaviest casualties were inflicted on July 5. Yesterday, roads leading to the area where the shooting took place were blockaded. The police have strengthened their forces in the area. People's Armed Police, divided into squads of three, could be seen standing in defensive circles facing out.

The top headline reports that Beijing is considering to raise its winter heating standard from 16 to 18 degrees.

The big photo on the front page features a struggling cyclist who fell over on a flooded roadway. According to Beijing's Meteorology Center, the downpour from 14:00 to 18:00 was the biggest rainfall in Beijing this year.