Beijing, 5 May (ZXS) -- The involvement of veteran screenwriter Shi Hang's involvement in sexual harassment has been fermenting on Chinese online platforms for many days.

As of May 5, more than a dozen women have spoken out saying that they have been sexually harassed by Shihang on different occasions. After Shi Hang responded on an online platform on May 2 that "the situation is not true", five of them also issued a joint statement, clearly stating that they "do not agree with Shi Hang's response", providing some evidence that can prove that Shi Hang committed sexual harassment, and asking Shi Hang to publicly apologize to all victims for his sexual harassment.

In response, Shi Hang responded on May 5 that "there is no sexual harassment", saying that "I have different degrees of interaction with several parties, including ex-exes who have had stable relationships." On the evening of May 2, "Xiao Mo", one of the parties in question, posted a long article on the online platform, saying, "You are welcome to judge by yourself: whether I am his 'ex', whether the 'perpetrator' and 'victim' exist, and whether I and he have an 'emotional relationship that has not been negotiated', or a 'destroyed bullying relationship'." At present, the article has received more than 5,3 likes.

In fact, in recent years, the issue of sexual harassment has been receiving increasing attention, and the discussion of sexual harassment has become more and more intense. In the Shihang incident, one of the parties claimed to have an intimate relationship, while the other party insisted that they were bullied and harassed, causing the public to re-examine the boundaries of individual rights and the scale of interpersonal communication under the framework of the rule of law.

In an exclusive interview with China News Agency, Deng Li, deputy secretary-general of the Gender and Law Research Center of the Institute of Law of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out that China's legal system has been constantly adjusting and developing, striving to more effectively prohibit sexual harassment through the rule of law. For example, the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China and the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests define sexual harassment more and more clearly, in which the elements of "against the will of others", "against the will of women", and the use of "speech, writing, images, physical behavior, etc." are relatively clear. However, the lack of a clear direction to "sexual harassment" itself may currently rely more on academic explanations.

In Teng Li's view, sexual harassment refers to "sex", containing "sexual meaning" harassment, and harassment itself is crossing the line, intruding on the safety and tranquility of others, and the "boundary" here is the boundary of individual rights stipulated by law, specifically the right to life, the right to body, the right to health, etc., which can be further refined into life safety, dignity of life, physical autonomy, freedom of action and physical and mental health.

She pointed out that at the same time, paragraph 1010 of article 2 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China and articles 24 and 25 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests also clearly stipulate that organs, enterprises, schools and other units shall prevent, stop and deal with sexual harassment incidents through system construction and disposal measures, and those who fail to fulfill their responsibilities shall bear corresponding legal responsibilities.

"Why didn't she (he) call the police?" Many netizens left such questions on the online platform. In this regard, Teng Li said, "In individual cases, victims often find it difficult to collect evidence, and it is also time and energy, but this is indeed an unavoidable cost of seeking substantive justice through procedural justice, because the law must avoid false accusations and abusive litigation while pursuing justice." However, Teng Li believes that once the legal weapon is raised, the victim has actually taken the first step to protect his rights, such as the complaint and the report itself can become one of the evidence to prove the existence of the infringement in subsequent civil litigation.

In order to minimize and eliminate the occurrence of sexual harassment, in addition to the legal level, from the social level, it is necessary to enhance public awareness, reflect on bad customs, including understanding and empathizing with the difficult situation of victims, and avoiding arbitrary, biased and irresponsible judgment and accusations. Teresa Teng pointed out that in particular, it is necessary to advocate cooperation and unity with equality and respect in the workplace culture, so as to avoid hierarchical thinking from crossing the normal work boundary and invading private personal space, and at the same time putting vulnerable subjects in a passive situation, thereby breeding or even promoting sexual harassment.

"In fact, we should recognize that sexual harassment not only violates the individual rights and interests of victims, but also harms a healthy and civilized working environment, and hinders competition and cooperation in the workplace." Teresa stressed that the prevention and control of sexual harassment in the workplace, or more broadly, in the workplace, is very important, and it is precisely for this reason that anti-sexual harassment as a social issue has special value and profound significance. (End)