The husband of a woman who earlier this month was forced to abort a seven-month-old foetus in Zhenping county, Shaanxi, has been missing since Sunday night after the family suffered days of harassment by local officials.

Deng Jiyuan, the 29-year-old father of the aborted foetus, had been constantly followed by local officials and thugs, his family said. A large banner had been put up in their town calling them traitors and demanding they leave.