Wang, a former deputy dean and party secretary of the university’s school of liberal arts, was also expelled from the Communist Party. Local police have said they are investigating the case.
Renmin University’s quick action was welcomed, but did not dispel doubts among those who believe that Chinese universities lack the mechanisms to prevent sexual harassment.
“I hope this incident will be a turning point that will change the atmosphere of sexual harassment in universities and society, and promote the establishment of a normal mechanism against sexual harassment,” said Lao Dongyan, a law professor at Tsinghua University.
Writing on her Weibo account on Tuesday night, Lao said that “in many cases, students can’t get the support they need from their university. Some universities even put pressure on students not to go public … for fear of damaging their reputations”.
Master’s and doctoral students in China often depend on their supervisors to decide whether they can publish papers, graduate or even find a job in academia, which can put them in a vulnerable position.
In her Weibo post, Lao said that the imbalance of power between teachers and students meant that victims have to remain silent in most cases.
“I hope that the next time such an incident occurs, the victim will be able to seek help through normal channels on campus, instead of risking further harm by exposing themselves to public opinion,” she said.
In a statement on Monday, Renmin University said Wang had “seriously violated party discipline, university rules and teachers’ professional ethics”. There was no mention of sexual harassment or any detail about what Wang’s behaviour had involved.
“The regulations on teachers’ ethics and conduct only mention the prohibition of sexual harassment, but do not specify what constitutes sexual harassment, how schools should prohibit it, or how students can seek help,” she said.
Zhou became a feminist icon in China after she went public in 2018 with accusations of sexual harassment against a television personality. Her complaints were subsequently dismissed.
The lack of complaint mechanisms on campus meant that “only a very small number of students who could not bear [the harassment] took the risk of slut-shaming and online violence by turning to the public for help”, Zhou said.
“If students can only turn to social media for help in dealing with sexual harassment in campus, it is a shame and a failure of the universities and society.”
Days after Wang’s dismissal, two more universities – one in the western province of Shaanxi and the other in Shandong province, eastern China – announced the sackings of teachers who had been publicly accused of sexual harassment.
Both used similar wording to Renmin University’s statement, with no specific mention of sexual abuse.
Unlike some universities in the United States and Hong Kong, none in mainland China have specific policies to prevent sexual harassment on campus.
Qianqian Law Firm in Beijing, which is dedicated to promoting women’s rights, published an article on its official WeChat account on Wednesday advocating the establishment of a mechanism to prevent sexual harassment in universities.
“In 2018 and 2019, 60 cases of sexual assault in universities were exposed online,” the law firm said, adding that “there are countless ‘silent majorities’ behind the cases that are reported publicly”.
“The concentration of academic power, the lack of regulation of the relationship between teachers and students, and the culture of gender discrimination that pervades academic institutions are the root causes of sexual harassment being ignored, tolerated, and exempt from serious punishment.”
