Alibaba CEO sacks manager accused of rape, condemns 'forced drinking culture'

Alibaba connected Monday fired a manager accused of rape, arsenic its CEO condemned the "ugly forced drinking culture" affecting 1 of China's astir celebrated companies.

Sexual battle has got expanding attraction successful China recently, with celebrities—including Chinese-Canadian superstar Kris Wu, who was accused of rape—facing investigations and ineligible charges.

In the latest high-profile allegation that sparked public outcry, an unidentified worker astatine Alibaba accused her manager and a lawsuit of sexual assault during a enactment travel to eastbound China, according to media reports.

She was allegedly made to portion and aboriginal violated.

The e-commerce giant's CEO Daniel Zhang connected Monday issued an interior memo to staff—seen by AFP—condemning the onslaught and his ain company's archetypal handling of the complaint.

He said interior investigations recovered the accused had confessed to "intimate acts" with the pistillate portion she was inebriated, violating institution policy.

"He volition beryllium fired and ne'er beryllium rehired," Zhang said, adding the contented was present with the police.

A institution typical confirmed the accused has since been sacked.

Alibaba's lawsuit said successful a connection that it had fired the worker accused of intersexual assault.

Zhang besides deed retired astatine an "ugly forced drinking culture", a concern signifier that has travel nether occurrence including astatine Alibaba.

"Regardless of gender, whether it is simply a petition made by a lawsuit oregon a supervisor, our employees are empowered to cull it," Zhang said.

The unfortunate primitively brought up the alleged assault to elder managers, according to a missive circulating connected Chinese societal media.

She yet decided to spell public.

Her lawsuit rapidly went viral connected China's Twitter-like Weibo platform, with a hashtag of the incidental present viewed 820 cardinal times.

It prompted users to stock their ain experiences, with 1 pistillate alleging her supervisor turned a unsighted oculus erstwhile others pushed her to portion astatine a enactment dinner, lone asking if she was "alright" the pursuing day.

The president of Alibaba's neighbourhood retail concern radical Li Yonghe, and its quality resources generalist Xu Kun, person resigned, the institution said.

They had failed to instrumentality due enactment "when the employee reported a horrendous enactment specified arsenic rape", said Zhang successful the memo.

Meanwhile, Alibaba pledged to found a dedicated reporting transmission for its much than 254,000 staff.

Alibaba has already been nether authorities scrutiny, with regulators successful the midst of a wide run to rein successful the increasing clout of tech giants.

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© 2021 AFP