The decomposing bodies of an elderly couple were found in their rented home in Luoyang, Henan province, on Sept 18, a day before the Mid-Autumn Festival. Despite being the parents of three grown-up sons, the elderly couple died more or less unattended. The tragedy once again highlights the "empty-nest" problem facing the rising population of aging people in China, says an article in Youth Times. Excerpts:

Apart from being a time for family reunion, this year's Mid-Autumn Festival was also the first since a new regulation - effective from July 1 - made it mandatory for grown-up children to attend to the parents' financial and spiritual needs.

Senior residents have lunch at a nursing home in Cheng'an, Hebei province. The Ministry of Civil Affairs said it will focus on in-home elderly care services in the near future. Hao Qunying / For China Daily

The death of the couple in Luoyang was indeed a tragedy, but it was not the first of its kind in China. The rising number of aging people has intensified the "empty nest" problem - grown-up children living and working away from their parents and thus being unable to visit them regularly.

The new regulation makes it mandatory for grown-ups to visit their parents more often, emphasizing the importance of family members' support for senior citizens. But the solution to the problem lies in whether the government, as the public service provider, can fulfill its responsibilities in providing proper care to elderly people.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs recently responded to criticism against a proposed house-for-pension program for elderly people, saying it was only a pilot program and the government would not shirk its responsibility of providing services for elderly people. This is a comforting message. But given the many tragic incidents in recent years, the government has to play a greater role in addressing the problems faced by the rising number of senior citizens.

(China Daily 09/26/2013 page9)