Chinese medical experts on Wednesday called for specific laws and regulations on the treatment of Internet addiction, as the investigation of a teenager allegedly beaten to death by trainers at a rehab camp in southern China is still underway.

"The market of Internet addiction treatment in China is in a total mess due to lack of diagnostic standards and treatment guidelines," said Tao Ran, director of the country's first Internet addiction clinic under Beijing's Military General Hospital.

"The government should end this as soon as possible," Tao said.

Last Sunday, a 15-year-old boy in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region was reported dead, 10 hours after his parents sent him to a local summer training camp to cure his Internet addiction.

Several evident injuries were found on the dead body, according to the local government's press conference held on Tuesday. Four trainers in the camp were detained in connection with beating the victim to death and the case is under further investigation.

"The tragedy is not accidental. Most rehab camps adopt military training, but many teenage Internet addicts cannot handle it well. Thus it comes with conflicts and violence. A similar case also happened two years ago in Chongqing Municipality," Tao said.

The case also triggered an outcry on the Internet, with most netizens snapping at the victim's parents and such rehab camps.

"Poor boy! His parents are stupid to send him there, and the killers must pay with lives!" said a netizen with its IP in Beijing on 163.com.

Tao has been long insisting that Internet addiction is a disease which needs medical treatment rather than military training or education. His clinic treated about 5,000 Internet-addicted youths since it was founded in 2004.

According to Tao, medical experts attending a meeting held by the Health Ministry in June all agreed that Internet addiction was a kind of mental illness in a broad sense.

"Those measures including education program and military training widely popular among nationwide rehab camps are insufficient and ineffective.

"But the public, especially parents, often have the wrong idea and they go after these camps blindly. That's why we are in urgent need of regulations and standards to curb the disorder," Tao said.

The diagnose and treatment of Internet addiction has been controversial in China. Last month, the Health Ministry banned the use of electroshock therapy in Internet addiction treatment in north China's Shandong Province.

Several experts interviewed by Xinhua all echoed Tao's appeal for legislation and supervision.

Kong Lingzhong, chief editor of a domestic Internet addiction-themed portal, said Internet addiction was a complex social problem involving medication, psychology and education.

"Medical clinics and educational institutions turn to different ways, but the market is in chaos with irregular operation.

"All the institutions should have nationally-standardized qualifications, and a regulatory body is in need," Kong said.

The number of Internet addiction treatment institutions and rehab camps has soared in the past few years in big cities where many parents are worried about their kids' surfing on the Internet all day long.

China has 338 million Internet users, the largest number in the world, and an estimated 10 percent of young Internet users are addicts.

Tao suggested ministries of health, education and other department make joint efforts in the prevention and treatment of Internet addiction.

"Internet addiction has become the biggest youth problem in China. It deserves wide public concerns," Tao said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 6, 2009)