Chinese authorities have prosecuted 28 individuals and jailed eight police personnel in response to a savage attack on a group of women earlier this summer that sparked worldwide outrage.
In the early hours of June 10 in the northeastern city of Tangshan, a group of men hit a woman and her three friends multiple times after she turned down one of their advances.
The woman was pulled by her hair, attacked with chairs and bottles, and had her head repeatedly stomped. Surveillance footage of the abuse sparked outrage in China, where many demanded responsibility from the authorities and punishment for the perpetrators.
In a statement released on Monday, the People's Procuratorate of Tangshan's home province of Hebei announced that 28 individuals, including the seven males accused of participating in the attack, have been prosecuted since the case was first brought.
Multiple Offenses Committed by Suspects
The suspects were charged with several offenses dating back to 2012, including robbery, operating casinos, wrongful imprisonment of others, and malicious harm, according to a report from CNN.
Per the prosecution, two of the ladies received "second-degree minor injuries" and were discharged from the hospital on July 1. The other two sustained "slight injuries."
The Hebei Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision announced in a statement on Monday that eight police officials and officers had been jailed for alleged corruption and "protection" of the gang.
Seven of the suspects were directly engaged in the attack, and prosecutors said they would file charges against them once they had "reliable and adequate" evidence.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that police identified "Chen" as the main suspect in the assault and claimed that he "recklessly used violence" to inflict harm.
Authorities in Tangshan fired the deputy police chief and five other officials after the incident and began a crackdown on organized crime, per a report from Barron's.
Despite pressure from its patriarchal society, pervasive censorship, and inconsistent legal protection for victims, China has seen an increase in the discourse about feminism.
However, popular online writings criticizing the incident as a metaphor for the nation's greater issue with gender-based violence were removed.
Violence Against Women Still Persists in China
Domestic violence is still widespread and unreported in China, according to women's rights activists, and well-known feminists are frequently harassed and detained by the police.
ABC reported that gender-related violence has been a persistent problem in the country per Professor Emerita Wang Zheng, a seasoned expert in Chinese feminism and gender studies at the University of Michigan.
She stated that the Chinese government at all levels "did not put in efforts to eradicate these crimes."
Professor Zheng explained that authorities tried to "silence," sought to suppress the public outcry.
The MeToo movement in China, according to some observers, might reach a tipping point this year.
Professor Zheng, however, rejected the claim by pointing out that authorities had imprisoned young activists for voicing support for the chained mother in Xuzhou.
She said that this was the fact of living in China since there was nowhere else to turn but to jail.
"The outside world has to understand this political reality, that it's not just those misogynistic men in the society and carrying out violence against women, it's not just that."
