In a recent case in China, a man was jailed after abandoning his newlywed wife, who was diagnosed with terminal cancer, just two months after their wedding. The court labelled his actions as “vicious” and ruled that his neglect and emotional abuse violated his legal duties as a spouse. According to the South China Morning Post, the man, identified only by his surname Feng, married his wife, surnamed Wang, in 2022. Two months later, Wang was diagnosed with intestinal cancer, which had already progressed to its terminal stage.
Feng initially cared for her but soon used work commitments in another city as an excuse to evade his responsibilities and desert her. Despite Wang’s and her family’s frantic efforts to contact him, Feng remained unresponsive. Left to face her ordeal alone, Wang struggled financially, accumulating substantial hospital debt. Heartbreakingly, she died after spending more than 200 days in hospital.
After Feng’s abandonment, Wang’s family took legal action, filing a lawsuit against him at the Shitai County People’s Court. The suit targeted Feng’s refusal to provide care and financial support during Wang’s battle with terminal cancer. Feng had also proposed divorce twice while Wang was gravely ill.
Wang’s father denounced Feng’s “vicious behaviour,” revealing his futile attempts to reach him through phone calls, messaging apps, and even police interventions. After being summoned back to court, Feng eventually settled with Wang’s family and secured their forgiveness.
Feng’s shocking actions ignited a firestorm of outrage on mainland Chinese social media, with internet users condemning his callous abandonment of his terminally ill wife. Many called for stricter laws to protect vulnerable family members and hold accountable those who abandoned their loved ones. One user said, “He is not a human being. He abandoned his wife when she needed him the most.”
Another remarked, “What a cold-blooded person. This crosses all moral boundaries.”
In a strikingly similar case, a man from southern Hunan province faced severe consequences for abandoning his ailing wife in 2018. After she was diagnosed with uremia, he refused to return home to care for her or cover her medical expenses. Following her death, the man’s indifference continued, as he failed to arrange or attend her funeral. The court took swift action, handing down a one-year jail sentence, suspended for two years.