Current Events > Alibaba fires worker who accused boss of rape as China suppresses MeToo movement

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20211213-alibaba-fires-worker-who-accused-boss-of-rape-as-china-suppresses-metoo-movement

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba has dismissed a female employee who accused a male superior of raping her during a business trip in July, claiming she spread falsehoods. It is one of the latest in a string of high-profile assault allegations (including one by tennis star Peng Shuai) against men in power, as Chinas #MeToo movement struggles with state suppression and delayed justice. The crisis at Alibaba first erupted in August, when a female employee (identified in court papers by her last name, Zhou) reported to the company that a manager (whose surname is Wang) assaulted and raped her during a business trip in July. The incident, she said, occurred after a drunken night entertaining colleagues at a business dinner. Another man at the dinner (a client of Alibaba) was also accused of assault. After receiving no help from management, Zhou took matters into her own hands, unfurling a banner in one of Alibabas cafeterias and posting a video of her protest on the companys internal website. An Ali male executive raped a female subordinate, and no one in the company has pursued this, she yelled in the video. She also published a lengthy essay about the alleged assault on Alibabas internal system. As Zhous accusations sparked outrage within the company and on Chinese social media, Alibaba sprang into action, appearing at first to take Zhous allegations seriously. Alibaba Group has a zero-tolerance policy against sexual misconduct, and ensuring a safe workplace for all our employees is Alibabas top priority, the company said in a statement. Management fired Wang and told employees in a company-wide memo that it would quickly put into place anti-sexual-harassment policies, as well as a dedicated channel for workers to report misconduct. Two senior managers also resigned for failing to take appropriate action after Zhou first aired her case. Alibaba CEO Daniel Zhang reportedly said he was shocked, furious, and ashamed about the misconduct case.

But in September, after investigating Zhous accusation, Chinese prosecutors announced they would not file charges against Wang, stating that he committed forcible indecency which can include sexual assault but not rape but that his actions did not constitute a crime. After receiving an administrative penalty for indecency, he was released. Then, after taking initial crisis management measures, Alibaba terminated Zhou, stating that her original accusation violated the companys code of conduct. In a dismissal letter Zhou received in November, Alibaba wrote she had spread false information about the assault and the companys handling of the case, resulting in a bad impact. The letter also said that the company faced legal consequences from other parties regarding her case, and suggested that it had sought Zhous cooperation to negotiate the termination but did not receive a response. Zhous case is just one of a string of sexual assault allegations involving powerful men that have erupted on Chinese social media over the last few years. The most recent was made by tennis star Peng Shuai, who in November accused former Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault the first time the fledging movement has taken aim at the Communist Partys top leadership. Pengs accusations, published on Chinas microblogging platform Weibo, were removed by censors within minutes. Since then, the three-time Olympian has disappeared from public view, prompting global concern and calls from the administration of US President Joe Biden and the United Nations Human Rights Office to provide independent and verifiable proof of her whereabouts.

Hopefully that company gets destroyed