Woman sues boyfriend over months of domestic abuse

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Guicui, a 27-year-old girl, has lost faith in marriage and love after suffering months of domestic violence years before. Despite keeping silent in the past, Guicui is now set to appeal to a higher court to stand up and fight for her rights, Tencent reported.

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The nightmare

September 24 is Guicui’s birthday, which should be a memorable and happy day for her. But in 2014, everything changed that day, as her boyfriend Li Rui spilled ethanol on Guicui and lit her afire in Kunming, southwest China’s Yunnan Province.

The young woman received three-degree burns on her face, chest, neck, abdomen, and limbs. The judicial authentication showed that her injury constitutes a level three disability.

Li, however, threatened his girlfriend, saying “You cannot tell anyone, otherwise you and your family will be in danger. I know where your family members are.” Guicui chucked away her first chance to speak out to others who may help her.

Staying at home, Guicui’s wounds did not recover but showed signs of inflammation. Yet under these circumstances, Li took away her phone and blocked her from connecting with her families and friends.

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Ray of light

It was not until 48 days after the incident occurred did Guicui stealthily tell her friend Chen Yuanyuan. Chen called the police and they came to Li’s home. Li tried to prevent the police from entering the house, while Guicui’s abdomen suppurated.

Because of the delay in reporting the case police were unable to collect evidence in a timely manner.

Li kept on giving false promises to the girl and her mother Wang Shunqin, who knew the case till Chen went to the police. Guicui put her last hope on Li’s commitment, worrying that he would not take responsibility for taking care of her injuries when she leaves him.

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Back to hometown

The last straw breaks the camel’s back. On July 31, 2015, Guicui’s mother took her back to southwestern Guizhou Province where they hailed from. The girl was too feeble, with less than 40 kilograms weight after being confronted with Li’s abuse and cheating.

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Back in their hometown, mother Wang made several decisions to cheer up her daughter. She raised money to pay for Guicui’s scar repair surgery, helped her open a photo studio, and prepare to go to court.

Their odyssey of the legal battle has been difficult as much evidence has gone missing and Guicui now only has a few clips recorded furtively. In August 2016, local police withdrew her case of intentional injury on the grounds that the plot was minor and less harmful. And in June 2017, the local district court rejected Guicui's claim. Currently, the mother and daughter are determined to appeal to a higher court.

In the meantime, Guicui is trying to lead a relatively normal life, working at her photo studio and accepting the scars of her former boyfriend's torture. Although she likes kid she told Tencent that “The most terrifying thing for me is a man. I may not get married, but hopefully, I can make some money and adopt a child.”

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Guicui’s story has gone viral on China’s Twitter-like platform Weibo since Friday, garnering over 10,000 comments. Netizens felt sad about her experience and advocated for no tolerance for domestic violence.

“Please call the police in time when suffering domestic violence! Faintheartedness will only indulge them hurt you even worse,” @xuanxuejun said.

“I feel sympathetic to Guicui, hoping Li could get what he deserves. Meanwhile, as a lesson to alert ourselves, the story told me if you don’t protect yourself, no one can protect you. Law is not intelligent, it only protects people who understand it,” @zhangxiaozha noted.

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Domestic violence is a global problem. China's first anti-domestic violence law took effect on March 1, 2016, expanding the definition of domestic violence and introducing a variety of measures to prevent violence, care for victims, and punish perpetrators.

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