‘Uterus made of iron’: woman in China sued over betrothal gift after abortion and found to have done same thing with 6 other men
- Man finds out wife had been married to 6 men before, following same path of getting pregnant, having an abortion, then quickly filing for divorce
- Court orders return of bulk of betrothal gift over sham marriage
A man in China has sued his ex-wife for the 186,000 yuan (US$26,000) bride price he paid after she filed for divorce two months into the marriage following an abortion – a pattern she had repeated with six other men.
According to the mainland media outlet Legal Daily, the woman from central China’s Henan province, who uses the pseudonym, Shuang, met the man, Xiaoya, on a blind date set up by a matchmaker in March.
They got married two months later, and in July she found out she was pregnant but decided to have an abortion after claiming doctors found a fetal anomaly. She then filed for divorce after the abortion.
Xiaoya agreed to the divorce but sued for the return of his betrothal gift.
Also known as a bride price, betrothal gifts are usually given from the family of the groom to that of the bride as a symbol of his financial strength and commitment to the marriage.
Two lower courts initially dismissed Xiaoya’s case, but during an appeal to a higher court he revealed that Shuang had been married to six men, following the same path of getting pregnant, having an abortion and then quickly filing for divorce.
