Women in Sangzhi county, Hunan Province, have complained of being forced into undergoing hysterectomies, with some suffering injuries as a result of the operations.

One of them, Zou Xiaofen, 31, with two daughters, says she was forced to have the operation on December 21. The surgical needle broke and fell into her oviduct, putting her life at risk.

Zou objected to having the operation, saying she was worried about its safety, but said she was forced to have it because she already had two children.

"I was very worried about my wife's life when she was undergoing emergency treatment after the operation," Zou's husband, Gu Yuewen, told the Global Times Tuesday, breaking down into tears.

Gu said the head of the township, Chen Hualin, promised that the township government would take responsibility for any mishap that might occur during the operation and signed a written guarantee to this effect.

Gu said his wife is still receiving medical treatment for the injury caused by the operation.

According to the Regulation on the Administration of Family Planning Technical Services issued in 2001, citizens have the right to choose which contraceptive methods to use.

Another woman in the village, Li Meiying, with two daughters, told the Global Times that she was forced to have the operation in 1997. As with Zou, the surgical needle also fell into her oviduct during the operation. She said the government did not pay her any compensation.

"The government said if we did not have the operation, they would demolish our house," Li said.

Calls to Chen, the township head, and a deputy county head, went unanswered.

Liang Zhongtang, a researcher on family planning at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that forced hysterectomies were prohibited by the law, but the practice has been common since the family planning policy was implemented in 1973.

Liang said courts normally do not hear cases concerning family planning, and that victims can only resort to petitions if they want compensation.