CHONGQING, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- When Wu Xiaohui first read about the launch of a mobile app with a particular focus on child protection, she felt compelled to download the app and check how it works.

As a mother of a 12-year-old girl, she pays close attention to issues regarding the protection of the underage population. In her eyes, the launch of the app in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, where she lives and works, provides a new outlet for old problems, but also seems long overdue.

Wu said she was emotionally affected by a school bullying-themed film called Better Days. Lead character Chen Nian, who throws herself into preparing for the national college entrance exam, becomes a target of school bullying and embroiled in a murder.

"I often wonder whether Chen may have had a different destiny, had there been a channel for her teacher to report the predicament which the girl was going through," Wu said.

Now, the mobile app could be one of those channels, and a readily available way to curb school bullying, Wu said.

WEAVING A SAFETY NET

Authorities in Chongqing recently rolled out a mobile app, demanding that relevant departments and individuals timely report clues or evidence of children being harmed or at risk.

The action follows a guideline issued in May by nine national authorities, including the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Education.

The harm and risks cover sexual abuse, assault, bullying, domestic violence, desertion, abduction, poisoning, forced begging and other potential risks, according to the guideline.

Co-developed by the people's procuratorate of Chongqing's Jiulongpo District and the district public security bureau, the app, the first of its kind in China, has been put into trial operation in the district since July 23.

Apart from the two agencies, seven other departments of the district, including the supervisory committee, women's federation and civil administration department, have joined in the initiative and will play their respective roles and jointly act.

"Compared with calling the police directly, which mainly serves to crack down on crimes, the app undertakes functions of collecting clues in advance and preventing harm to minors," said He Ke, an official with the people's procuratorate of Jiulongpo.

He listed some probabilities, for example, a school teacher finding that a student often has bruises on his or her body. Situations like these may or may not involve the harm of a minor, but a timely report may help prevent this.

The authorities stipulated that all institutions engaged in child-related work in Jiulongpo, including kindergartens, primary and middle schools, as well as after-school training agencies, should download the app as they have the obligation, and bear the responsibility, of protecting children.

The nine departments can assess potential hazards and the seriousness of the clues or evidence in various forms, including text, photos and videos, which are uploaded onto the database of the app.

The district police will handle the documentation and respond to people who submitted the materials within three days, and report progress and results within three months, with the people's procuratorate playing its role in whole-process supervision.

The departments also called for voluntary installation and use of the application among the whole society, for parents in particular.

By Sunday, more than 3,300 people had registered, and 19 reports had been made and are being processed, according to statistics.

The app is expected to be expanded across Chongqing if the trial operation is successful.

FURTHER CONCERNS, IMPROVEMENTS

"The introduction of the mandatory reporting system is aimed at engaging the whole society in weaving a safety net for children," said Sun Yuanming, a researcher from the Chongqing Academy of Social Sciences.

However, Sun added, there is still a lot of work to be detailed for the reporting system, and the app itself also needs to be improved.

Some people have other things to worry about, such as children's privacy and a protection mechanism for the reporters of these crimes.

Liao Gehong, director of the department of obstetrics and gynecology under Jiulongpo People's Hospital, said that what needs to be detailed most is the protection mechanism for minors' privacy.

"For example, we need to be clearer on what kind of information should be reported and exactly how much information can be shared through the app. When multiple departments act, how can we protect the minors' personal information?" Liao said.

Liao also suggests strengthening the protection mechanism for reporters like doctors and teachers.

"Although regulations give them the right to report clues and evidence concerning child abuse, some parents or persons involved are unwilling to accept the information reported," said Liao.

"This is a rather meaningful app. It tells us not to sit and watch as harm is being done to children. The next step needs to address the ensuing issues carefully as well," said Liu Xiya, principal of Xiejiawan Primary School in the district. Enditem