Family abuse leads to tragic suicide

The abusive relatives of an elderly couple who committed suicide were forced out of their village home in Heidouyu village, Pinggu district, Sunday, following orders from the village committee.

Xu Zhenlan, 74, and her husband Guo Yuchun, 82, from Hebei Province, hanged themselves on February 27.

Xu's relatives alleged the couple committed suicide because of the abuse they suffered from their eldest son's family.

Heidouyu village committee ordered the family to leave within 10 days of the suicides. The secretary of the committee, Chen Yushu, said while they tried to aid the couple, he feels he bears some responsibility for the tragic outcome.

"After knowing about their suicide, we cut the water and electricity to the son's family. I should take some responsibility for not doing enough to stop the old couple's tragedy," Chen Said.

The couple lived for 10 years with their eldest son, Guo Shuhuai, 56, his wife Li Fengren and two daughters and a grandson in a two-story home the son had built himself. The couple, who had three sons, two of whom lived in other villages, lived in a small shack to the side of the house.

Xu Zhenrong, 58, Xu's sister, said that the crisis point came on February 27, when the couple was taken back to Heidouyu by their sons, after an unsuccessful stay with the youngest son. She had received a phone call from her sister in which she said she wanted to die.

"She told me that no one in her family cares for her. No one wanted to live with them. She said that she wanted to die and cried hard," she said.

After the couple arrived back in Heidouyu, the three sons ate dumplings inside the house, said Xu Zhenrong.

"They refused to give their mother food, and didn't let her go in," she said.

"At first, my sister had some money. When it was spent by her eldest son, he turned against them and abused them for about six years," she said.

Xu's brother, Xu Zhenshan, 67, who rushed to his sister's home that evening, said that the family did not expect the couple would really kill themselves.

"When we arrived at around 11 pm, they had hanged themselves from a ladder and their bodies were cold," he said.

Chen said that the village committee went to Guo's door twice in 2012 to persuade them not to abuse their parents.

"I heard that their son did not give them any food. So they dug for wild vegetables and sold souvenirs to scrape a bare living," Chen said.

"When we talked to them, they said good things. However, they did bad things behind our backs," said Chen.

"But this woman is nice. Whenever we talked to her, she always said her son is good to them," he said.

Because the couple moved to the village from Hebei Province, Chen said the village was unable to give them the same welfare supplements as local villagers.

On the night the couple was found dead, the police were called but no charges were filed against the son.

"The police said it was because it was suicide," said Chen.

Zhang Qiyuan, a lawyer with Yinke Law Firm, said that the son could bear criminal responsibility if the elderly couple's close relatives sue them.

"They can sue them for abuse. If this was proved, the son could get a sentence of up to three years," Zhang said.

Zhang said the committee's decision to cut off the family's water and electricity is illegal but morally acceptable.

"Because this hasn't caused the family any real harm like financial loss, the committee doesn't need to face any punishment," noted Zhang.

Xu's family said they would not file charges against the eldest son. Neither Guo's family nor the couple's eldest son could be reached. It is not known where his family went after leaving the village.