China's Internet Addiction Camps

“About 14% of China’s youths may be addicted to the Internet, says a psychologist; he runs a rehab center, or ‘boot camp,’ that takes a tough approach to the weaning process, the Telegraph reports ... Others, however, take action on their own. Witness the case of teen known only as ‘Little Wang,’ who, in an effort to end his addiction, cut his left hand off. ... China is one of several countries grappling with what the Telegraph calls an addiction ‘epidemic’; in China, it’s known as wangyin, the New Yorker reported last year. Taiwan has established fining systems for parents who let their kids spend too much time on their computers. Japan, like China, has addiction-fighting camps; China now has some 250 of them, Kotaku reported last year. China sees such addiction as a clinical disorder that’s among the top dangers to young people, though there may be a political side to that, the New Yorker noted, given that the government is concerned about people organizing online.”

“Teen’s cure for Internet addiction,” Fox News, Feb. 3, 2015

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