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- Sino-Canadian pop star Chris Wu has been formally arrested on suspicion of rape, Beijing prosecutors said in a statement Monday.
The move comes after 30-year-old Pop Star Chris Wu was first arrested by police in the Chinese capital on July 31. Following online protests against allegations of sexual assault against him in China’s most notorious #Metoo case.
The allegations first surfaced touching Chinese social media policies on Weibo last month. When a woman sexually harassed her when she suspected suspect Wu Yizan. Whose Chinese name is Wu Yifan, under the handle of the tested Du Meizhu, was drunk at the priest’s house where he said he go to a casting interview.
The woman, a student at Beijing Communications University in China, said she was 17 at the alleged attack. Wu’s agent did not respond to CNN’s request for comment. A brief statement from the Chaoyang City Procuratorate in Beijing said Wu’s arrest on suspicion of rape was formally approved on Monday but did not provide details of the charges.
Before his arrest, Wu denied the allegations on his personal Weibo account. His company said it was suing prosecutors, calling the claims “evil rumors.”
Wu, born in southern China but is a Canadian citizen, is best known as a member of the popular Korean-Chinese pop group EXO and later as a soloist after leaving the group in 2014. He has acted in many films and modeled for brands such as Burberry. They soon became one of the best brand ambassadors in the country.
But many of the brand’s biggest partners quickly distanced themselves when allegations of rape spread in July. French fashion house Louis Vuitton, Italian luxury brand Bulgari, and Chinese cosmetics brand Kans were among those who cut ties with the star.
Wu’s dramatic fall only accelerated after his capture. His wildly popular social media accounts, including his Weibo page with more than 51 million followers, were deleted overnight. The songs have also been removed from music streaming sites. On Monday night, Wu’s arrest became a hot topic on Weibo, with most comments supporting the police action. The related Weibo hashtag was viewed 1.6 billion times as of Tuesday morning.
China’s #MeToo Movement
Wu’s case is not the only #Metoo scandal to rock China in recent weeks. Last Monday, e-commerce giant Alibaba announced it had fired a team member accused of sexually harassing another team member while on a business trip. The victims published their allegations on Chinese social media in both cases, causing an uproar online and the police investigating.
Some have praised the authorities’ swift action on the Internet, who cite the two cases to indicate the effective rule of law and criminal justice in China. However, it raised eyebrows, among others. Who begged the case’s high profile to emphasize how rare it is for survivors to speak up and seek justice.
“It is not surprising that the two cases have attracted so much attention since (Chris Wu) and the fame Alibaba was given,” said Feng Yuan, a scholar, and feminist activist. “But it also reminds us that in many cases of sexual harassment and other violence. When the accused is unknown or influential, (the victims) may not hear their voices at all.”
Sexual assault survivors in China have long faced severe stigma and resistance, both officially and in public.
The theme came to the fore in 2018 when the #MeToo movement went global. In China, too, more women have shared their experiences of sexual harassment and violence. The action was quickly halted when the government blocked a growing blockade of online discussion, including hashtag censorship and many related publications.