Chinese Singer Zheng Jun Accused Of "Child Abuse" After Making Son Kowtow 1000 Times For Lying

Chinese singer Zheng Jun, 54, and his actress wife Liu Yun, 39, have a 11-year-old son Jagger.

In 2015, father and son appeared on the hugely popular Chinese variety show Dad Is Back, gaining many new fans along the way.

On Sunday (Jun 12), they found themselves in the news after Zheng Jun revealed on Weibo that he had caught his son lying, and that he had punished the boy by making him "kowtow 1000 times."

According to Zheng Jun, after kowtowing 200 times, Jagger asked if he could choose another form of punishment.

"I said 'I give you a beating? Or [you can] sit cross-legged [on the floor] for an hour in exchange for 500 kowtows? [Jagger] said he'd choose to sit cross-legged, at least [he] can learn something [from it]," wrote Zheng Jun.

He then shared that his son only managed to sit in that position for 10 minutes before crying and begging to be spared. He also promised to never lie again. But his pleas were in vain.

Zheng Jun went on to explain that he and Jagger have been practising to sit cross-legged, and that his son could easily be in that position for half an hour. 

He then reminded other parents not to exact the same kind of punishment on their kids.

"[Jagger] is not kowtow-ing to me and my wife, [he does it] in the meditation hall," he said. 

Despite his disclaimer, many netizens still found Zheng Jun's way of parenting  questionable and inappropriate, with some netizens even accusing him of "child abuse".

"Do you have to use this kind of demoralising method to teach your child?" asked one netizen. 

After the public outcry over his parenting style, Zheng Jun deleted his post and wrote a new one to explain himself. 

He wrote: "Kowtow is an essential part of Himalayan yoga. [It's] simple and effective. Meditation is a good way to train a child's focus. Every morning [we] kowtow [and do] yoga together, at night we meditate, that's an every day thing for me and my son."

"I've never made my son do things that I am unable to do myself," added Zheng Jun, who said that he has never hit his son, or asked the kid to fulfil any dreams for him. 

"I just wish for him to be an honest, kind, strong and courageous person."

Photos: new.qq / PBE media / inf.news