Zhang Zhang (Guangzhou Daily): Jianyiyongwei is a traditional virtue that will never be outdated. Anyone who risks his or her own life to protect others in danger should be recognized as a good example for the society; Li's conduct, then, was indisputably heroic. Though she was first denied the honor, the local authorities never doubted the nature of her good deed. They were mindful to avoid giving the incorrect impression to other minors by not approving the award, trying to curtail further unnecessary tragedies that might result from similar actions.

The focus should be on the significance of this case as a future precedent rather than whether or not Li was posthumously awarded the honorary title. The most important lesson here is that minors should never be pressured to save others at the cost of their own lives. Instead, they should be taught to help those in danger through safe and responsible means, on the precondition that they not injure or endanger themselves.

The Code of the Daily Behavior of Primary and Middle School Students put forth by the Beijing Municipal Government in 2003 has removed jianyiyongwei as a moral requirement for students, instead asking every student to "report illegal and criminal conduct in time, be brave and smart while in danger, and learn to protect yourself." In Ningbo, a city in east China's Zhejiang Province, local regulations explicitly prohibit minors from participating in emergency rescue and disaster relief. These cases show that it has become widely accepted in China to put minors' self-protection and safety first in cases of emergency. On that precondition, smart methods should then be used to help others.

A deserved honor

Pan Hongqi (Beijing Youth Daily): Not encouraging minors to risk their own lives to save others has been a big change in China's juvenile moral education over recent years. However, denying a minor the honor she deserves after sacrificing her own life is unfair.

Rewarding young heroes like Li does not necessarily conflict with the new proposal of non-encouragement. The local government can posthumously award Li the title in honor of her conduct, and then use her tragic case to teach others the importance of self-protection while rescuing others in danger.

Gao Mingyong (The Beijing News): The standard for awarding the title of jianyiyongwei takes into account only that one has saved others without considering his or her own safety, not how old and or how widely celebrated that person is. In such cases, even a criminal's heroic behavior should theoretically be recognized. Perhaps most importantly, the law makes no stipulations regarding what sort of people should or should not risk their lives to save others. If there is such language, then this is tantamount to discrimination.

One who cannot protect himself or herself, or does not know about the potentially costly dangers of doing so, certainly should not be encouraged to rescue others. However, denying her selflessness is not only disrespectful to Li and her family, but also discourages future acts of heroism. As an 8-year-old, Li deserved perhaps even more recognition and praise.

The local authorities had initially decided to offer Li's family monetary compensation in lieu of awarding her the title. Li's family made it clear, "We are asking for an honor for our daughter, not money." Everyone's life is valuable. While Li's actions should not necessarily be encouraged among minors, awarding the girl for her self-sacrifice is absolutely necessary.

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