A South Korean court has ruled in favour of a woman who refused to donate part of her liver to her critically ill husband, holding that organ donation is a matter of personal bodily autonomy and cannot be forced, even within marriage. The case has sparked heated debate in China and South Korea following a high-profile divorce case.
According to the South China Morning Post report, the couple, both in their early 30s, had been married for three years and were raising two young daughters when the husband was diagnosed last winter with primary biliary cirrhosis, a rare and life-threatening liver disease. Doctors warned that without a transplant, he had less than a year to live.
Perfect Match, Painful Refusal
The medical tests showed that the wife is a close match, with over 95 percent compatibility. The wife later admitted that she had made a false explanation when she claimed that she had a phobia when confronted with the results of the tests. She explained that her real fear stemmed from the risks of major surgery and the possibility of leaving their two young children without a mother if complications arose.
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This led to a tension that gradually arose within the family. The husband allegedly ridiculed her caregiving skills, claiming she wanted him dead, while his parents even tried to persuade her to reconsider, asking whether she would “watch her husband die.” Even before the conflict started escalating, a liver from a brain-dead patient became available, and the husband underwent a transplant successfully.
Court Rejects Allegation Of 'Malicious Abandonment'
The husband later filed a divorce case, citing his wife's "malicious abandonment" and her failure to carry out her obligations as a spouse. The court, however, declined his suit on the grounds that "refusal to donate an organ cannot amount to a legal reason for dissolution of marriage."
In the subsequent trial that attempted to find who was responsible for the failed marriage, the court's decision once more favored the wife. The judges agreed that verbal harassment, coercion, and the lack of mutual trust resulting from the husband's actions had irrevocably broken the couple’s marriage. The couple eventually agreed to divorce. The wife was granted custody of their children and continues to provide financial assistance for the husband’s post-transplant recovery.