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In China, the massive exodus of young and adult labour from rural areas to the cities has led to a breakdown in family networks within rural communities. In this context of parent-child separations, the question of the personal safety of “abandoned children” deserves particular attention. Based on a survey and interviews with children and adults involved in their care, a number of observations emerge: firstly, in a context of individualized society and mass population migration, the protection of children now goes beyond intermediate family and community structures; it is based on a direct approach by the individual to national laws for the protection of his or her rights. Secondly, the dissolution of intimate relationships within families contributes, to a certain extent, to the formation of children’s self-protection, by encouraging legislative and political frameworks to consider their agency.