During a severe famine, 200,000 people in Bo County, Anhui Province, starved to death, and horrifying incidents of cannibalism and human flesh trading emerged.
According to Liang Zhiyuan, the then Deputy Director of the Bo County People’s Committee (government office), in his report titled “Special Cases Report – An Account of Cannibalism in Bo County, Anhui,” revealed that the extent and frequency of cannibalism in the area were unprecedented. From his three years of rural work notes totaling nearly a million words and personal observations, it was evident that cannibalism was widespread across every commune, with some brigades having almost no villages spared.
The phenomenon peaked in April 1960. Sometimes, when a dead body was buried by the roadside, it would disappear overnight. In some places, to prevent corpses from being eaten, farmers would guard graves for several nights until the bodies rotted and smelled bad enough. Some ate corpses from other families, and some consumed their own deceased family members; there were those who ate cooked flesh, while others ate raw; some fed on dead bodies, while others killed and ate living people; some consumed their own relatives, while others bought human meat at markets (often disguised as cooked pork). In the outskirts of the city, market stalls sold pork that was actually human flesh.
At that time, cannibalism was officially referred to as “Special Cases.” The cases and details disclosed by Liang Zhiyuan in his article were truly shocking.
There were cases of uncles eating their nieces. According to retired civil servant Ge Xiande from the Civil Affairs Bureau, in his hometown of Chengfu Commune, there was a member who ate his niece’s flesh. In 1960, after his brother and sister-in-law died, a niece who was under 10 years old and was adopted by him, starved to death and was eaten by him. Due to consuming human flesh, he suffered from nervous tension and illness for many years.
There were sons eating their fathers. On May 25, 1960, a report from the county living inspection team led by Sun Zhenlin stated that in Luying Village, Weigang Commune, a farmer named Ma cooked and ate his deceased father, selling a portion as pork at 1.6 yuan per jin.
There were parents eating their children. On March 28, 1960, in Wangzhuang Village, Shuanggou Commune, after their young son starved to death, Wang Mou and his wife cooked and ate him. After the meal, both of them suffered from diarrhea and passed away three days later. Out of a family of seven, five perished from hunger, leaving the two surviving children to be sent to the commune orphanage.
There were also cases of mothers eating their daughters. In the spring of 1960, Zhu Lishi in Zhuai Village, Liujiang Brigade, Dagang Commune, could not bear her hunger anymore amidst her family of four where three had already perished. Hence, she nibbled on her deceased daughter’s flesh, which led to severe diarrhea, expelling lots of rotten meat. When inspected by officials like Ren Huaizan, the tobacconist at Dagang Commune, Zhu was found swollen all over, nearly unconscious, but still aware of her needs for food, medicine, and care. Brigade leader Zhu Benshan truthfully conveyed the situation to investigators, mentioning that he had just buried the eaten daughter yesterday.
There were fathers killing and eating their sons. According to retired official Sun Chuanshi from Dayang Finance Office, in the southwest of Shaowang Village, Dingguosi, a farmer named Sun, from his wife’s neighboring family, killed and cooked his biological son Little Baldy in 1960, leading to the death of their entire family of eight.
There were elder brothers killing and eating their younger brothers. Yang Xinkuan, retired officer from the Technical Supervision Bureau, recalled an incident that took place in the spring of 1960 in Hanlaojia Village, Longtaimiao Brigade, Chengfu Commune. Han, aged 16, resorted to killing his younger brother after their parents died, placing the head and back in a mud ring while cooking the flesh in a pot, only to be discovered by officials. Upon interrogation, he admitted to the crime of killing and consuming his brother. Being under 18, he was apprehended and sent to the commune’s “Rocket Camp” (a labor-intensive organization) for detention, where he died a few months later.
In some villages, multiply household cannibalism became prevalent.
In the spring of 1960, multiple farmers in Hexi Wang Village, Hebei Brigade of Gucheng Commune, consumed human flesh. Despite numerous warnings from the brigade, Wang’s mother persisted, leading to her being sent to the commune’s “Rocket Camp” by Secretary Geng, where she died from detention.
In Haizhuang Village, Weizhuang Commune, more than half of the 40 households resorted to cannibalism, with people often clandestinely scavenging corpses at night. Although the brigade was aware of the situation, they felt powerless to stop it and turned a blind eye.
There were instances of mothers preparing cooked human flesh to revive nearly dying orphans.
In Zhang Zhuang, Gathering East Village, Guantang Commune, there was a widespread practice of consuming human flesh openly. Zhang mixed human flesh with rice to save a nearby orphan named Zhang Cuiliang.
There were even comical episodes of people rushing to eat human flesh.
In Wanglou Village, Nidian, Wuma Commune, numerous farmers resorted to eating human flesh out of starvation. To curb the spread of this practice, the brigade decided to make examples of the offenders. Wang’s former wife, on multiple occasions, partook in eating human flesh. On one occasion, as she was about to scoop some cooked human flesh into a basin, she was caught by authorities. The authorities then took her, along with the human flesh, to a public meeting, where the attendees started a heated debate. When one brave individual said, “Let me try,” and boldly tasted a piece of human flesh, chaos ensued as everyone scrambled to grab a piece until the entire basin was emptied of its contents. Wang Tizhong’s wife also seized a piece and found it exceptionally delicious. Unable to continue the criticism session, the gathering had to disband without resolution.
In the spring of 1960, due to the continued occurrence of cannibalism, a market for human flesh surfaced. Human flesh trading markets emerged in the outskirts, market towns, farmers’ stalls, and among roaming vendors.
In late March 1960, a farmer named Lv from Lilou Production Team, Dilou Brigade, dug up and cooked three female corpses between March 17th and 21st, selling them as pork at Caipiao Zha Construction Site.
In the spring of 1960, Xing from Wangmiao Forest Area, Wang Temple Forest Farm, frequently traded human flesh as pork among villagers.
In the same period, Zhou from Renzhai Village, Xuecai Garden Brigade, Nineteen-Mile Commune, cooked human flesh as pork for sale within the village. When discovered by officials like Li Yanrong from the county Agricultural and Industrial Department, Zhou was instructed to bury the evidence and, fearing repercussions, promptly fled.
In the spring of 1960, a 57-year-old farmer from Guoqiao Village, Huangying Brigade, Wuma Commune, killed a 13-year-old boy named Lian Chen from the same village, cooked and consumed a part of him overnight, then sold the rest as pork the next day at the village crossroads.