Alibaba fires manager accused of rape and punishes executives for mishandling sexual assault complaint amid internet firestorm
- A supervisor, who goes by the nom de guerre Quyi, was fired for having improper “intimate acts” with a female staff while she was inebriated
- Judy Tong, Alibaba’s Chief People Officer, will be given a demerit because the HR unit failed to pay enough attention and care to employees
A supervisor at the company, who goes by the corporate nom de guerre Quyi, was fired after confessing to having improper “intimate acts” with a female staff while she was inebriated, according to an internal memo seen by South China Morning Post, wholly owned by Alibaba. Quyi will never be rehired by the company, according to the predawn memo written by Zhang, which added that law enforcement will determine whether Quyi has committed rape, or indecency that violates the law.
“This incident is a humiliation for all [Alibaba employees],” Zhang wrote, noting that the incident reflected the “tremendous sadness for the challenges in Alibaba’s culture.”
“We must rebuild, and we must change. Change is only possible if everyone takes individual action, but it must start at the top. It starts with me. Please wait and watch,” Zhang wrote.
Separately, Quyi was reported to be applying for a new position at ByteDance, the Beijing-based owner of TikTok and Douyin.
ByteDance confirmed on Monday that it has terminated the recruiting process for Quyi, adding that it was not aware of the rape charge before the news broke out over the weekend.