Disputed 'Good Samaritan' case gets a new ending

With China embracing the spirit of helping others during Lei Feng Day on Thursday, a disputed case has once again triggered reflections on heroism in the country.

A mixture of heroics and tragedy surrounds the case of Meng Ruipeng, a student who lost his life saving two children who were drowning in an artificial lake on the outskirts of Puyang City in central China's Henan Province in late February.

The 24-year-old North China University of Water Resources and Electric Power student jumped into the water and rescued the children, but sadly drowned in the process.

Even as people praised Meng's heroic deeds, one of the children's mothers claimed he had fallen into the water by himself and had not drowned while saving the children. She did so in order to avoid the risk of having to pay his family compensation for his death.

The reaction elicited anger from Meng's relatives and friends, who claimed they only wanted justice, not money.

"I doubt anyone would dare become a good samaritan in the future," Meng's cousin said.

After a police investigation, the story got a new ending. The mother, who has little money, admitted she only told the lie to avoid paying compensation.

On Tuesday, thousands of residents attended Meng's funeral to pay respect to the young hero.

But discussion on the topic did not end there.

"If you don't provide help, you will be self-condemned; but if you do, you are likely to be hurt by people you help. It is really a dilemma," said one comment on China's microblog Sina Weibo.

It is not the first time Chinese samaritans have faced such a dilemma. Last year, a man from south China's Guangdong Province aided a senior citizen but was accused of knocking him down. The man committed suicide in the face of demands for compensation.

In other cases, the public has refrained from assisting fallen senior citizens over concerns of later being blackmailed.

In 2012, China's State Council published a paper outlining ideas to help protect good samaritans which would provide preferential polices in employment and other fields.

Although there have been calls for a national good samaritan law, only a few cities have pushed ahead with such legislation.

LEI FENG SPIRIT NEEDED

March 5 was designed by late Chairman Mao Zedong as "Lei Feng Day" to commemorate the soldier who died tragically young in the early 1960s after devoting his life to selflessly helping the needy. Chinese are taught about his altruism from childhood.

Volunteers from Chinese provinces of Shandong, Anhui, Hunan and Guangdong participated in various activities to show goodwill and lend a helping hand to strangers on Thursday.

Lei Feng's spirit, which involves honesty, friendship, selflessness and generosity, is a widely accepted values and ethics for Chinese. It is still meaningful to learn from him even today, said Zhang Mingsuo, a professor with Zhengzhou University.

The spirit can make everyone become better, especially in a society under a crisis of trust, Zhang said.