#MeToo cases face big challenges in China’s legal system - The Washington Post

Recognition of unfair treatment of women at the workplace has been slow.  Even when the law on paper provides protection, practice has lagged.  In its new civil code the duty of employers to take steps to protect workers from sexual harassment has been recognized, as Renmin University leading scholar and a drafter of the law explains.  Here Darius Longarino discusses some of the problems in making protections real.   In an article a few months ago Longarino and Angela Zhang discuss some of the legal obstacles.  Recently the Times reported that a woman's claim against a prominent television personality was lost on appeal.- GWC

#MeToo cases face big challenges in China’s legal system - The Washington Post

(6) 性骚扰相关纠纷在中国法院何去何从？ | LinkedIn

By Darius Longarino

 and 

Yixin Ren

 

Yesterday at 7:00 a.m. EDT

On Tuesday, an Alibaba manager threatened a defamation lawsuit against a female colleague who accused him of sexually assaulting her on a business trip. The same day, a Beijing court dismissed Zhou Xiaoxuan’s lawsuit against Zhu Jun, a Chinese TV star, for sexually harassing her when she interned at the state broadcaster CCTV. Zhu is also suing for defamation.

These developments highlight the challenges the #MeToo movement faces in China’s legal system, where survivors are more likely to be successfully sued for defamation than prevail as plaintiffs. They also show how many employers don’t provide protections and recourse regarding workplace sexual harassment, despite being legally required to do so.

When the Alibaba employee initially reported the alleged assault to her managers at headquarters, one reportedly said that women were not suited to the job. Later, they decided not to fire the manager she had accused of sexual assault, out of concern for her reputation.