The parachute kids who wind up in jail

THEY come from well-off families and are flown into a new country to study. But for some it’s a recipe for disaster and trouble.

THEY have been labelled parachute kids.

Flown into a new country to study at international universities and colleges, most of the teenagers are privileged youngsters in a foreign land.

But parachute kids, as they are known in America, have come under the spotlight this week after three students were jailed for their part in brutal attacks on other students.

Parachute kids are those students who travel to the United States to study and stay with host families while their parents remain in China.

However, some have expressed concerns over sending young kids unsupervised to a foreign land, with those criticisms ringing clear in this week’s sentencing case of the teenagers.

A lawyer for one of the jailed girls said it was simply a recipe for disaster.

BRUTAL ATTACK

This week, three Chinese students were jailed in California for attacks against two classmates that included burning one of the victims with cigarettes and forcing her to eat her own hair.

Yunyao Zhai, 18, was sentenced on Wednesday to 13 years behind bars, Yuhan Yang, 19, was sentenced to 10 years and male co-defendant Xinlei Zhang, 19, got six years.

All three had admitted the charges of kidnap and assault and apologised in court for their actions.

Investigators said the case against the defendants revolved around two separate attacks last March.

The first involved Zhai and Zhang, who assaulted a 16-year-old girl at a restaurant and park in Rowland Heights, a neighbourhood east of Los Angeles with a large Chinese population.

Authorities said the attack took place because Zhai believed the victim disrespected her.

The second attack took place two days later when the three defendants kidnapped an 18-year-old classmate and took her to a Rowland Heights park where she was stripped, repeatedly beaten, spat on, kicked and burned with cigarettes over a five-hour period.

Zhang also provided scissors to cut the woman’s hair, which she was then forced to eat, prosecutors said.

Several people who witnesses the attack captured it on their mobile phones.

Officials believe that attack likely stemmed from a dispute over a boy and an unpaid restaurant bill.

Some critics have expressed concerns about sending teenagers overseas to study without parental support.

PARACHUTE KIDS

The number of “parachute kids” settling in California has surged in recent years, according to the South China Morning Post.

Many head to the areas of San Gabriel Valley, Arcadia, San Marino, Rowland Heights, Temple City and Walnut.

The youngsters usually board in private homes paying for room, transportation and substitute parenting.

Many Chinese parents also view it as a chance to learn a new language and culture and to escape the country’s ultracompetitive college-entrance exams, The Post reported.

‘ASKING FOR TROUBLE’

The judge overseeing the Californian case said it reminded him of Lord of the Flies, the 1954 novel by William Golding about boys stranded on a deserted island who gang up on each other.

The case has also prompted soul searching among the Chinese community in Rowland Heights and beyond, with some questioning the wisdom of sending teenagers to a foreign country with no close parental supervision.

“Well-meaning parents of China should not send kids here alone and unsupervised,” Yang’s lawyer, Rayford Fountain, told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune after the sentencing.

“It is a recipe for disaster.”

AUSTRALIAN PERSPECTIVE

Parachute kids is not a term commonly used in Australia to describe international students and the majority stay well clear of trouble.

Australia also remains a popular destination for Chinese students.

According to student accommodation service Oz Homestay, Australia is the third most popular destination for Chinese students.

It says most of its students from China are aged between 14-17.

“These students are coming with the intention of learning English, completing high school and then attending university in Australia,” it says on its website.

‘NOT ALL BAD’

While the behaviour of international students generally is considered quite good, China has taken steps to rectify the bad behaviour of Chinese tourists and travellers who do mess up overseas.

Last year, the country’s National Tourism Administration (NTA) announced it will keep a database of travellers who commit offences, with their names passed onto police, customs officials and even banks.

Offences that could earn obnoxious Chinese citizens a place on the blacklist include “acting antisocially on public transport, damaging private or public property, disrespecting local customs, sabotaging historical exhibits or engaging in gambling or pornographic activities”, according to Xinhua news agency.