Mr Wei, 55, does not look for fish in these waters. Instead, he pulls human bodies out the river, which he then sells back to grieving families. "I bring dignity to the dead," says Mr Wei. Mr Wei rows out to a temporary footbridge on the river everyday. He charges relatives up to $500 if they want to take the body home. Mr Wei has started this business seven years ago. So far he has collected about 500 bodies. Some of them have been murdered, while others have drowned or committed suicide.
After he collects the bodies he puts them in a small cove where they are sheltered from the currents. He then places advertisements in local newspapers describing the bodies. Some people will travel to his place and some will call him if they recognized the bodies. Sometimes he fishes corpses out of the river and gives them a proper burial.
Mr Wei said it was not just about the money. "My own child died in this river and I could not find the body," he says. "It was very painful. That's why I started doing this job."
It's very ironic to help other people searching for dead bodies but Mr Wei himself could not find his own child's body. To me, this kind of job is very scary as not everyone is brave enough to look for dead body. However, Mr Wei could collect up to 500 bodies. That is beyond my imagination! For him who is less educated, has not many choice, especially in China, the unemployment rate is very high. At least Mr Wei is willing to work even though his job is collecting dead bodies. For people like us, who stay in first world country, are so blessed that we have many chances to look for a better job. So, we should be thankful and appreciating the lifestyle that we are having right now. We have to learn to understand people who are less fortunate and respect their life.
By: Norika Tjoe
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