Even when all hope seemed lost, Hong Kong-American pop star Coco Lee's mother never gave up on her daughter's survival. Coco Lee was 48 when she passed away on Wednesday, July 5, at a Hong Kong hospital after an apparent suicide attempt on Sunday, July 2.
A Mother's Love
According to The Straits Times, Coco's older sister Nancy revealed in an interview with Hong Kong's Ming Pao Weekly that their 86-year-old mother had been staying at Coco's bedside after the incident.
"My mother is a very good traditional Chinese medicine practitioner. She hoped to make a final effort after the doctor said my sister was brain-dead. My mother refused to give up and tried acupuncture on her head."
Nancy said the doctors informed them there was no hope of saving Coco's life.
"My mother lost her husband at the age of 40 and Coco was born at that time. My mother worked very hard to bring us up. I asked the doctor to give my mother and Coco a chance, even if there was only a slim chance," Nancy recalled.
According to The Straits Times, Nancy was quoted in the Ming Pao Daily News as stating that the family hopes to arrange Coco's burial sometime in August. Since the singer did not pass away from any known sickness, an autopsy is necessary by Hong Kong law to identify the cause of death. This might take four to six weeks.
Canadian billionaire Bruce Rockowitz, who is in his mid-60s, is reportedly Coco's spouse. He is leaving for Hong Kong shortly. Sources said the couple had been separated for almost two years, and divorce processes had begun.
Over the course of their 12-year marriage, the singer reportedly underwent in-vitro fertilization nine times in order to produce biological children. From his first marriage, Rockowitz has two kids.
See Also: Chinese-American Singer Coco Lee Dies at 48
Condemning Rumors
When asked by Taiwan's Next Apple News about claims that Coco attempted suicide by slashing her wrists, Nancy said the rumors were untrue and asked that people stop making assumptions about what happened to her.
Nancy also disproved music composer Jae Chong's social media post claiming Coco was facing cancer at the time of her death. Cancer in Coco's breasts had gone into remission, she told the United Daily News of Taiwan.
She went on to say that her sister was always upbeat until around six months ago when she saw her give in to sadness.
Alarming Issue
According to recent reports on this sensitive matter, the suicide rate among Chinese youth has risen in the past few years.
Between 2010 and 2021, the annual suicide rate for children aged 5 to 14 reportedly rose by more than 10%. Experts have called for intervention techniques to reduce student stress in response to the growing number.
See Also: China's Teenage Suicide Rates Surge as Students Struggle With Heavy Course Loads
