Japanese personnel were offered the possibility of repatriation after stabbing

Some Japanese companies in China have offered to repatriate their employees and their families after a ten-year-old boy was stabbed to death in Shenzhen.

A Japanese manager and employees of Japanese companies in Beijing said a 44-year-old man surnamed Zhong stabbed the boy on his way to school on Wednesday.

Boy dies after being stabbed

The boy was a Japanese citizen and had a Japanese father and a Chinese mother.

He died the following day.

Envoy calls on Beijing to strengthen security measures

Japan's ambassador to Beijing, Kenji Kanasugi, also spoke with China's Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong and called on Beijing to strengthen security measures.

The knife attack was the second such attack near Japanese schools in China in recent months.

Notably, the incident occurred on the anniversary of a 1931 incident that led to war between China and Japan.

The Japanese embassy said in a statement that it discussed the matter with the Japan Chamber of Commerce and the Japanese School in Beijing on Thursday.

Security of the Japanese community in China

Japan called on the Chinese government to do everything possible to ensure the safety of its nationals in the country.

The Japanese embassy said it had also asked the Chinese government for details of the incident.

Relocation option

There was no mention of relocation at the embassy.

However, the Beijing-based manager from Japan said some companies offer this option to their employees.

Employees of four Japanese companies said some large companies in China had given their employees and their families the opportunity to be relocated.

They said that the companies would cover the moving costs.

The management and employees did not want to disclose further details.

School in focus

“It’s a really big shock,” the manager told Reuters.

“And this is another case where a Japanese school was targeted.”

“As for the temporary departure, yes, that is correct and many Japanese companies will do that,” he said.

“We need to know why this happened again… otherwise we cannot live and work here.”

China expressed its condolences to the victim’s family

The Chinese Foreign Ministry expressed its condolences to the victim's family on Thursday and described the crime as “an isolated case.”

Chinese media reported on Friday that the attacker confessed to attacking the boy.

He was arrested in 2015 for destroying public telecommunications facilities.

(With contributions from Reuters)