TWO security guards posted at Futian District People’s Hospital are under investigation for allegedly abusing a stray cat and attacking news photographers.

    A patient at the hospital, surnamed Yu, revealed a video showing that two security guards abused a cat at the hospital entrance at around 6 p.m. Monday. A 2-minute, 27-second video Yu shot with his mobile phone revealed one of the security guards pulling the ear of the cat, while the other bound the cat with tape. They raised the small animal off the ground as it struggled, pulled it across the floor, then hung the helpless feline from a nearby potted tree. While it cried out the guards laughed and commented on its struggles.

    On Tuesday four reporters from Guangzhou and Shenzhen media arrived at the hospital to discover the body of cat which seemed to have been run over by a vehicle. Security guards attempted to prevent the reporters from entering the hospital to interview staff and patients.

    A young guard shouted at the reporters using foul language, snatched a video camera and smashed it to the floor. The camera destroyed, the guards kicked at another photographer.

    According to patients who spoke with the media, three cats lived in the forest near the hospital. Some patients said they would feed the cats, describing the animals as lovely. On Monday afternoon one of those cats was captured by security guards. It is unknown whether the cat which had been run over was the one which was abused by security guards.

    Lin Hanli, a member of hospital affairs committee, explained that the security guards were managed by Shenzhen Mingzhe Property Management Co. The company acknowledged that the guards acted wrongly when they confronted the reporters. But one company manager actually claimed that security guards were saving the cat, not abusing it.

    Xu Yiqun, an attorney with Guangdong Xinyong Law Firm, said animal abusers must bear responsibility for their actions. In China there are laws protecting wild animals, but there are no provisions for the protection of pets. Abusers may only be held morally at wrong and be ordered to compensate the owner for the actual cost of the pet. In contrast, in most Western nations, cruelty to animals may be deemed a criminal violation, especially if the abuse takes place when children are present.

    Police reported that security guard Tan, who attacked the reporter, remains under investigation.

    (Han Ximin)