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| Stuck With an Ex-Husband’s Debt, a Journalist Fights for Divorced Women | Stuck With an Ex-Husband’s Debt, a Journalist Fights for Divorced Women |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| BEIJING — For the first seven months after her divorce, Li Xiuping thought her former husband had disappeared from her life. Then came the phone call that turned Ms. Li, a journalist for a state-run newspaper in Beijing, into a dogged activist for the economic rights of Chinese women. | BEIJING — For the first seven months after her divorce, Li Xiuping thought her former husband had disappeared from her life. Then came the phone call that turned Ms. Li, a journalist for a state-run newspaper in Beijing, into a dogged activist for the economic rights of Chinese women. |
| In that terse call, Ms. Li’s ex-husband told her that she had missed a court hearing initiated by creditors who were chasing the couple for unpaid loans — debt that Ms. Li said she didn’t know about. After a frantic trip to the courthouse, Ms. Li said she found out that her ex-husband had borrowed about $400,000. | In that terse call, Ms. Li’s ex-husband told her that she had missed a court hearing initiated by creditors who were chasing the couple for unpaid loans — debt that Ms. Li said she didn’t know about. After a frantic trip to the courthouse, Ms. Li said she found out that her ex-husband had borrowed about $400,000. |
| The case, raising a tangle of questions about divorced women’s liability for their former husbands’ debts, pushed Ms. Li into a fight to change Chinese marriage laws. For three years, the button-down journalist has been lobbying lawmakers and judges in a relentless effort that has even alienated some former friends in the cause. | The case, raising a tangle of questions about divorced women’s liability for their former husbands’ debts, pushed Ms. Li into a fight to change Chinese marriage laws. For three years, the button-down journalist has been lobbying lawmakers and judges in a relentless effort that has even alienated some former friends in the cause. |
| “This just isn’t right, I don’t want to see more lives ruined,” said Ms. Li, 49. “I don’t want to give up on this until we’ve gone as far as we can.” | “This just isn’t right, I don’t want to see more lives ruined,” said Ms. Li, 49. “I don’t want to give up on this until we’ve gone as far as we can.” |
| Over the past two years, the global #MeToo movement has inspired Chinese women to speak up against sexual harassment. Ms. Li wants to extend the debate to women’s economic rights. | Over the past two years, the global #MeToo movement has inspired Chinese women to speak up against sexual harassment. Ms. Li wants to extend the debate to women’s economic rights. |
| She and hundreds of other women, as well as some divorced men, say China’s law has unfairly entrapped them when courts ruled they were jointly liable for former spouses’ unpaid loans. | She and hundreds of other women, as well as some divorced men, say China’s law has unfairly entrapped them when courts ruled they were jointly liable for former spouses’ unpaid loans. |
| “I shouldn’t be dragged into uncontrollable risks because of a marriage,” she said in an interview in her apartment in northwest Beijing, which she has held onto during a running legal struggle. “This is not just to overturn the decisions in our own cases, but to alter the destiny of more Chinese women.” | “I shouldn’t be dragged into uncontrollable risks because of a marriage,” she said in an interview in her apartment in northwest Beijing, which she has held onto during a running legal struggle. “This is not just to overturn the decisions in our own cases, but to alter the destiny of more Chinese women.” |
| Ms. Li and other women are now fighting what she calls the “final battle” to change how Chinese laws deal with post-divorce debt disputes. China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress, has been discussing amendments to marriage laws, and Ms. Li and many other women have petitioned lawmakers to demand that the debt issue be addressed. | Ms. Li and other women are now fighting what she calls the “final battle” to change how Chinese laws deal with post-divorce debt disputes. China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress, has been discussing amendments to marriage laws, and Ms. Li and many other women have petitioned lawmakers to demand that the debt issue be addressed. |
| Under Xi Jinping, the authoritarian Communist Party leader, China has silenced rights lawyers and human rights activists. But Ms. Li and others have avoided political confrontation and honed a more fluid style of activism, using WeChat, a popular social media platform, to mobilize, coordinate and share advice about handling messy divorces. | |
| More women, and some men, have found themselves caught up in similar disputes. Divorce has become increasingly common in China, and as the middle class and private businesses have expanded, growing numbers of divorces involve debts that must be divided up, along with children, pets and homes. | More women, and some men, have found themselves caught up in similar disputes. Divorce has become increasingly common in China, and as the middle class and private businesses have expanded, growing numbers of divorces involve debts that must be divided up, along with children, pets and homes. |
| China’s current marriage law dates to 1981, a time when divorces and loan disputes were much rarer. Though it has been amended over the years, it still leaves much unclear about how debt should be divided up. | China’s current marriage law dates to 1981, a time when divorces and loan disputes were much rarer. Though it has been amended over the years, it still leaves much unclear about how debt should be divided up. |
| In 2003, the nation’s top court, the Supreme People’s Court, tried to offer certainty by telling judges to presume that both spouses in a divorce shared liability for personal debts. That rule helped prevent the use of sham divorces to escape debts. But it left a burden on divorced spouses disputing debts to prove that a loan agreement had clearly excluded them from liability. | In 2003, the nation’s top court, the Supreme People’s Court, tried to offer certainty by telling judges to presume that both spouses in a divorce shared liability for personal debts. That rule helped prevent the use of sham divorces to escape debts. But it left a burden on divorced spouses disputing debts to prove that a loan agreement had clearly excluded them from liability. |
| For Ms. Li and many other divorced women, that attempt at legal clarity has simply created more confusion about how to prove they had no responsibility for a debt. | For Ms. Li and many other divorced women, that attempt at legal clarity has simply created more confusion about how to prove they had no responsibility for a debt. |
| “As long as a debt was acquired during marriage, the presumption was that it was shared,” said Jiang Yue, a law professor at Xiamen University in southeast China. A former husband or wife had to prove that a debt was not jointly held, she said. “But if they never knew about it to begin with, how could they assume the burden of proof?” | “As long as a debt was acquired during marriage, the presumption was that it was shared,” said Jiang Yue, a law professor at Xiamen University in southeast China. A former husband or wife had to prove that a debt was not jointly held, she said. “But if they never knew about it to begin with, how could they assume the burden of proof?” |
| Ms. Li’s journey to activism began in 2014, after she and her husband, Li Xianghua, divorced. Their marriage had faltered while he was consumed with his automobile parts business and she worked as a journalist at the Farmers Daily, an official newspaper for agricultural news, she said. | Ms. Li’s journey to activism began in 2014, after she and her husband, Li Xianghua, divorced. Their marriage had faltered while he was consumed with his automobile parts business and she worked as a journalist at the Farmers Daily, an official newspaper for agricultural news, she said. |
| After the divorce was finalized in 2014, Ms. Li looked forward to a quiet life as a “bookworm,” she said. Mr. Li could not be reached for comment. But a Beijing court judgment from 2016 about their debt dispute said that Mr. Li accused his former wife of paying for their living expenses from his company’s funds. | After the divorce was finalized in 2014, Ms. Li looked forward to a quiet life as a “bookworm,” she said. Mr. Li could not be reached for comment. But a Beijing court judgment from 2016 about their debt dispute said that Mr. Li accused his former wife of paying for their living expenses from his company’s funds. |
| “Business income was used for the couple’s shared life,” he said, according to the court judgment. Ms. Li denied using her husband’s loans to pay for their living expenses. | “Business income was used for the couple’s shared life,” he said, according to the court judgment. Ms. Li denied using her husband’s loans to pay for their living expenses. |
| Ms. Li was born in rural Anhui Province, where her parents were local officials, and during the 1980s studied journalism in Wuhan, a city in central China. | Ms. Li was born in rural Anhui Province, where her parents were local officials, and during the 1980s studied journalism in Wuhan, a city in central China. |
| Back then, feminist ideas joined the intellectual ferment on campuses, including through a Chinese translation of Simone de Beauvoir’s “The Second Sex.” Fighting on the front lines for women’s rights seemed distant from her routine of filing stories on village administration, rural migrant workers and land policy for the Farmers Daily. | Back then, feminist ideas joined the intellectual ferment on campuses, including through a Chinese translation of Simone de Beauvoir’s “The Second Sex.” Fighting on the front lines for women’s rights seemed distant from her routine of filing stories on village administration, rural migrant workers and land policy for the Farmers Daily. |
| But as her former husband’s loans came due, Ms. Li became entangled in several court cases about her share of the debt. Her life became dominated by creditors showing up at her apartment and by visits to courts, to submit paperwork and beg for more time. | But as her former husband’s loans came due, Ms. Li became entangled in several court cases about her share of the debt. Her life became dominated by creditors showing up at her apartment and by visits to courts, to submit paperwork and beg for more time. |
| Her lowest point came in 2015, when she was detained for nine days after she accused a judge of confiscating documents from her. In the detention cell crowded with dozens of inmates, Ms. Li staged a hunger strike, drinking only bottles of sweetened tea, she said. | Her lowest point came in 2015, when she was detained for nine days after she accused a judge of confiscating documents from her. In the detention cell crowded with dozens of inmates, Ms. Li staged a hunger strike, drinking only bottles of sweetened tea, she said. |
| “This was absolutely ridiculous. They even didn’t notify my lawyer,” she said of her detention. “I wanted to fight for my rights after I got out.” | “This was absolutely ridiculous. They even didn’t notify my lawyer,” she said of her detention. “I wanted to fight for my rights after I got out.” |
| For Ms. Li, the Chinese internet offered a kind of salvation. While websites can be heavily censored in China, there is space for discussing social controversies. Browsing online in 2016, Ms. Li came across a group of women whose complaints sounded uncannily like hers: divorced and distraught after former husbands had left them buried under debt. | For Ms. Li, the Chinese internet offered a kind of salvation. While websites can be heavily censored in China, there is space for discussing social controversies. Browsing online in 2016, Ms. Li came across a group of women whose complaints sounded uncannily like hers: divorced and distraught after former husbands had left them buried under debt. |
| “Marriage is risky, be careful when you collect the marriage certificate,” read the online essay that caught Ms. Li’s eye on Weibo, a Chinese social media service that allows groups of users to share messages and links. “If you marry the wrong person,” it read, “this marriage will bury your life.” | “Marriage is risky, be careful when you collect the marriage certificate,” read the online essay that caught Ms. Li’s eye on Weibo, a Chinese social media service that allows groups of users to share messages and links. “If you marry the wrong person,” it read, “this marriage will bury your life.” |
| As she explored, she found women recounting how creditors had swooped in demanding repayment for their ex-husbands’ debts. Sometimes the men had evaded debt collectors, leaving ex-wives to deal alone with repayment demands. Pursued in the courts, some women were blacklisted from travel, or their incomes were docked; some lost their homes to pay off debts. | As she explored, she found women recounting how creditors had swooped in demanding repayment for their ex-husbands’ debts. Sometimes the men had evaded debt collectors, leaving ex-wives to deal alone with repayment demands. Pursued in the courts, some women were blacklisted from travel, or their incomes were docked; some lost their homes to pay off debts. |
| In the course of her fight, Ms. Li said her biggest challenge was a personal one: fear of speaking out about a marriage gone wrong, and enduring the public attention that would bring. | In the course of her fight, Ms. Li said her biggest challenge was a personal one: fear of speaking out about a marriage gone wrong, and enduring the public attention that would bring. |
| “No one wants to tell other people that she met a bad guy,” she said. “In China’s public opinion environment, many people humiliate victims instead of perpetrators.” | “No one wants to tell other people that she met a bad guy,” she said. “In China’s public opinion environment, many people humiliate victims instead of perpetrators.” |
| Overcoming her shyness, Ms. Li became an increasingly determined organizer. She pressed other women to speak out, posting pictures of herself holding up a sign that called for changing the rules on debt in divorces. In 2017, she organized a survey that collected about 1,500 responses from people — nearly all women — who described their troubles with divorce and debt. | Overcoming her shyness, Ms. Li became an increasingly determined organizer. She pressed other women to speak out, posting pictures of herself holding up a sign that called for changing the rules on debt in divorces. In 2017, she organized a survey that collected about 1,500 responses from people — nearly all women — who described their troubles with divorce and debt. |
| By then the loose online coalition had about had about 1,300 members, nearly all women, she said. They shared information about their cases, cheered each other as they fought in the courts, and began lobbying judges and lawmakers. | By then the loose online coalition had about had about 1,300 members, nearly all women, she said. They shared information about their cases, cheered each other as they fought in the courts, and began lobbying judges and lawmakers. |
| Not all the women took a liking to Ms. Li and her determined ways, and the group was weakened by personality clashes and rifts over how to press their demands. | Not all the women took a liking to Ms. Li and her determined ways, and the group was weakened by personality clashes and rifts over how to press their demands. |
| “I think she can be too righteous,” said Xie Xiuying, an education professor who is a member of the group, said of Ms. Li. “She is totally upfront. If she doesn’t like something, she says it straight out, and sometimes even swears. So some people feel uncomfortable.” | “I think she can be too righteous,” said Xie Xiuying, an education professor who is a member of the group, said of Ms. Li. “She is totally upfront. If she doesn’t like something, she says it straight out, and sometimes even swears. So some people feel uncomfortable.” |
| Last year, though, the women scored a victory when the Supreme People’s Court offered a new instruction, narrowing down the circumstances when divorced spouses could be held liable for a former partner’s debts. That change was enough for some women, who have dropped out of the campaign. | Last year, though, the women scored a victory when the Supreme People’s Court offered a new instruction, narrowing down the circumstances when divorced spouses could be held liable for a former partner’s debts. That change was enough for some women, who have dropped out of the campaign. |
| But Ms. Li has pressed on, demanding that China inscribe a fairer deal for divorced spouses into a revised marriage law, rather than rely on the court’s instruction. On Friday, an official with the legislature said there had been nearly a quarter-million online comments about the marriage law, and that debt was one of the issues mentioned most often. | But Ms. Li has pressed on, demanding that China inscribe a fairer deal for divorced spouses into a revised marriage law, rather than rely on the court’s instruction. On Friday, an official with the legislature said there had been nearly a quarter-million online comments about the marriage law, and that debt was one of the issues mentioned most often. |
| “In the course of all this, I’ve helped make progress in rule of law in the true sense,” Ms. Li said. “I’ve discovered more possibilities in life.” | “In the course of all this, I’ve helped make progress in rule of law in the true sense,” Ms. Li said. “I’ve discovered more possibilities in life.” |