From XCOM.
On the 8th, in Chengwu County, Heze City, Shandong Province, China, a young man stabbed another man to death. Seemingly unable to quell his rage, the assailant continued to repeatedly stab the victim in the chest—dozens of times—even after life had already been extinguished, in a gruesome display that appeared to fuel his own hatred. Even elderly onlookers, drawn by the thrill of the spectacle, found themselves transfixed by the bizarre and horrific scene.
Video
The Reality Behind China’s “Spectator Culture” and Low Murder Rate
The sight of elderly onlookers transfixed by the scene of this incident evokes a phenomenon in China known as “spectator culture.” This mindset is said to have originated from a survival strategy of “minding one’s own business”—a habit ingrained by long-term psychological repression under feudal autocracy. The writer Lu Xun famously critiqued this attitude in his short story Medicine, depicting a crowd that gathered to watch an execution with cold indifference, devoid of any sympathy.
However, contrary to the impression created by such high-profile, heinous crimes, overall public security statistics in China remain relatively stable. According to the Ministry of Public Security, the homicide rate in 2023 was 0.46 per 100,000 people, with the incidence of serious violent crimes—such as bombings and murders—dropping by 10.7% compared to 2019. Data from the statistics site Global Note for 2024 places the rate at 0.50 (ranking 137th globally); while this is roughly one-tenth of the global average of 5.14, it is slightly higher than the rates in Japan (0.23) and Singapore (0.17).
Related Articles
- The ATM murder case that happened in China in 2017 is absolutely terrifying.
- Living expenses vanished into debt repayment; the man, enraged upon discovering the betrayal, forces a double suicide with his partner.
- Boyfriend finds out his girlfriend scammed him: “I’m gonna kill her and then kill myself” → terrifying video
Comments