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As China develops, the Internet’s presence is inescapable. But some get tangled in the World Wide Web becoming addicted to the Internet. 13-year old Xiao Yi paid the ultimate price for his obsession. He rode an elevator to the top of a 24-storey building and then jumped to his death. His suicide note explained he wanted to enter another life to meet the characters from the online games he played constantly, sometimes days in a row. “He had a kind of fixation.” Xiao Yi’s father says, “He threw himself into an imaginary world.”
Internet addiction got attention in China when stories such as Xiao Yi’s popped up in China state-run press. Internet addicts who died from exhaustion after spending days online or murdered others in search of virtual possessions. Public outrage over these incidents spurred the opening of China’s first Internet addiction treatment center.
The clinic’s military style tactics might seem harsh. But it’s a popular choice for worried parents.
"Ever since our door's opened, every bed has been full.” Says the center’s director. 20 at a time come for medical treatment and counseling. They are also kept busy with activities, designed to distract them from the lure of computers.
“I’m confident this will work or I wouldn’t have come here,” explains this college student. Critics aren’t so sure. Some argue the government is exaggerating concerns about Internet addiction as an excuse to crack down on Internet cafes and domestic game sites. But for China’s estimated 2 million Internet addicts, the temptation of the wired world is a real problem. Even at the clinic, the closest Internet café is just steps away.
Celia Hatton, CBS news, BeiJing.
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