Asian Angle | In India and China, #MeToo has much further to go
●Two cases – involving Chinese television anchor Zhu Jun and Indian politician M.J. Akbar – have galvanised women
●But the movement is not short of hurdles, and there is no guarantee those who speak out will succeed
Both are powerful men in their industries: one, a famous television host who is recognised by millions, and the other, a veteran newspaper editor who went on to become a powerful cabinet minister.
Both also rose to the top of their professions – and stayed there – despite what some in their own industries long knew about their allegedly predatory behaviour towards female colleagues. The only thing differentiating them is that one happens to be Chinese, and the other Indian.
In recent weeks, Chinese television anchor Zhu Jun and India’s junior foreign minister M.J. Akbar have, in different ways come to symbolise the fledgling #MeToo movements in India and China.
With both Zhu’s and Akbar’s cases set to go to court, they will also pose the first legal challenges to the #MeToo movements in both countries, which have already been stifled by deeply entrenched patriarchal values that continue to discourage Chinese and Indian women from speaking out.
On Wednesday, Akbar was forced to resign his government position. But even that took at least 19 women to bravely speak out, describing what they alleged to be a pattern of predatory behaviour targeting Akbar’s junior colleagues from his time as a veteran newspaper editor.