导读:日前，在公安部统一指挥部署下，福建、江西、广东、云南等7省区公安机关开展集中收网行动，破获一起特大贩卖婴儿案，抓获犯罪嫌疑人157名，解救被拐卖儿童36名。
Police in China have rescued 36 children who were being held in a huge trafficking ring, the latest swoop on a crime that is thought to involve tens of thousands of victims.
中国警方破获了一起特大儿童贩卖案，36名儿童被解救，据称这起案件中有成千上万的儿童受害。
More than 157 people were arrested for their involvement in the ring, which spanned across several Chinese provinces, police said.
警方表示，跨中国几个省份最终抓获了157名犯罪嫌疑人。
The suspects, who were held in raids from Fujian in the south-east, to Yunnan in the south-west, were believed to have already trafficked “dozens of infants” since 2014, reports said.
报道称，这些嫌犯是在从东南部的福建省到西南部的云南省的收网行动中被抓获的，自2014年来，他们已贩卖了“数十名婴儿”。
Media did not provide details on specific ages of those rescued, but Chinese state broadcaster China central Television (CCTV) showed images of babies in its report.
媒体并未透露这些被解救儿童的具体年龄，不过中国中央电视台在相关报道中已经公布了这些孩子的照片。
Child trafficking is a major problem in China, particularly in poor rural areas
儿童拐卖事件是中国长期存在的一个大问题，特别是在贫困偏远地区。
Chinese media Caixin said that nearly half of all cases of children who are sold involve the consent of their own family, including parents who often sell their daughters for cash.
中国媒体财新网表示，近乎一半的此类案件是在家人知情的情况下发生的，比如有些家长总是将女儿卖给别人。
Poor communities in China often have a traditional preference for male offspring, who can carry on the family name and provide support to their elderly parents.
中国贫困地区的人们通常有“重男轻女”的传统观念，他们认为儿子能继承香火，还能为年迈的父母帮忙。
Most of the trafficked children in China are boys aged under six who are often sold for adoption, while youngsters aged between 14 and 18 are commonly girls, suggesting that they are being sold into prostitution, Caixin said.
财新网称，中国许多被拐卖的儿童都是6岁以下的男孩，被拐卖给别的人家收养，以及14到18岁的少女，据称被拐去卖淫。
As many as 20,000 children a year are thought to be trafficked in China, while about 200,000 go missing, Chinese state media said. China has up to 1.5 million homeless children.
中国官方媒体称，中国每年有高达2万名儿童被拐卖，另有20万名失踪。无家可归的流浪儿童有150万左右。
