Photo/Illutration Office buildings and commercial facilities in Shenzhen, where many Japanese expatriates live (Yohei Kobayakawa)

Japanese expats with young families in China are gripped by anxiety and fear following the stabbing death of a 10-year-old boy in Shenzhen, a city in southern China.

The boy was attacked on Sept. 18 while he was walking to the Shenzhen Japanese School accompanied by a family member. He died in a hospital the following morning.

Although a suspect has been arrested, Chinese authorities have not revealed the man’s motive.

Japanese parents are taking all sorts of steps to ensure their children don’t stand out in a crowd, for example, by warning them not to speak Japanese in public.

A mother of two whose children also attend the Shenzhen Japanese School said her heart broke when she saw the hall on the sixth floor filled with flowers on Sept. 20.

“It’s a place where we should be shedding tears of joy at events like the entrance ceremony,” she said.

She brought her own flowers.

But the woman said many parents and children are hesitant to carry flowers outside, fearing they “might draw attention.”

The mother wants to stay in Shenzhen, and when she asked her children, they quickly responded they wanted to stay as well. But concerns about their safety weigh heavily on her.

The school plans to hold online classes from the coming week for the time being.

“I’m consumed by anxiety,” the mother said. “I don’t want to let my children leave the house. I told my sons to avoid speaking Japanese when outside,”

A 40-year-old Japanese woman living in Liaoning province, northeast China, due to her husband’s work, has a son the same age as the boy who was murdered in Shenzhen.

She often encounters kindness in China but believes “there are some Chinese people who don’t want to accept Japanese.”

A 60-year-old Japanese man residing in Dalian, Liaoning province, discussed with his Chinese wife how to keep their daughter safe after the incident.

Now, their daughter, who attends a Japanese school, carries a backpack instead of a Randoseru (a sturdy Japanese school bag) that would instantly mark her as Japanese.

A 44-year-old Japanese man, who lives in Beijing with his Chinese wife and 9-year-old daughter, said he can’t find the words when thinking about the victim’s family’s grief and helplessness.

His Chinese friends contacted him with messages of concern, saying, “Violence is never acceptable,” and “We are truly sorry this happened.”

He added, “I want people in Japan to know there are kind-hearted people here, too.”

A 55-year-old Japanese man, who has lived in China for 25 years and worked in human resources at several Japanese companies, noted that Shenzhen is more open compared with inland areas where he previously resided.

However, he said, “I feel anti-Japanese sentiment has increased (with the spread of social media.)” He understands why people suspect the attack was “targeted at Japanese nationals.”

In Tokyo, the government is considering offering online counseling and dispatching counselors to support families in China, according to the education ministry.

(This article was written by Yohei Kobayakawa, correspondent in Shenzhen, Ryo Inoue, correspondent in Beijing, and Kim Soon-hi, correspondent in Shenyang.)

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