China Sex Tape Victim Gets Expelled After Branded as “National Disgrace” by Dalian Polytechnic University

 The Outbreak

Scandal broke when pornographic videos were circulated on the internet which were purportedly done in a colle ge dorm room. While publication of the content was straight up non-consensual and breach individual privacy statutes and online crime statutes, the sole Chinese female student implicated was named, shamed, and punished. Social media became the immediate platform for public excoriation and attention—not of the voyeuristic surveillance crime, but of the woman's "immorality" and "patriotism." It amazed a majority of viewers with the university publicly releasing her complete name along with a photograph, effectively re-traumatising the victim without criticizing the male party at all. Netizens who were majorly women were angry with the patriarchical double standard along with colonial courtesy towards non-native English speakers, with hashtags like #WhoReallyDamagedNationalDignity trending highly on Weibo, China's Twitter equivalent. 

Dalian Polytechnic's Response 

The Dalian Polytechnic University, the girl's college, justified its move by saying the woman "seriously violated public morality and school reputation," calling her conduct an insult which "hurt the country's face." No sanction was, however, imposed on the foreign malestudent or he was not asked to exit. This egregious institution misogyny and alien favoritism ignited a firestorm of resentment from feminists, scholars of law, and foreigners who monitor China with disgust. It's not simply a university scandal—but an indication of institutional gender disbalance and a tendency for the state to regulate female bodies but implicitly condone men's privilege if it can be harnessed towards enabling an alliance with a far-away nation or a vision of accessibility.

Government and Public Response

Though no national government office issued a public statement related to the case, local Women's Federations and a few lawyers have seen fit to criticize the university for what it did in the case. But neither the criminal prosecution for the illegal distribution of video nor the websites which made the distribution possible have been prosecuted. "It's got nothing to do with sex. It's about power, domination, humiliating a woman publicly for violating patriarchic norms," a Beijing lawyer who didn't want to be named said. "It's grotesque and ironic to present her as the symbol of 'lost national dignity'." 

Implications

The case of Dalian Polytechnic is representative of a broader trend in China and globally: the mobilization of women's sexuality to support patriarchal stereotypes, and the inability of the state to protect women from assault—particularly when that assault comes from foreigners, the powerful, or from men. It comes at a time of particular concern for digital security, for cyber ethics, for institutional responsibility for safeguarding the rights of the privacy violation sufferers. In a nation which frequently censors material considered politically sensitive, the fact that the video spread far and wide with no immediate removal can only serve to breed suspicion about double standards of enforcement. 

Conclusion

The Polytechnic University of Dalian scandal brings into sharp focus how female bodies continue to be seen as carriers of morality and political symbolism and not bodies of citizens of an independent and free citizenry. Rather than protecting the dignity and rights of an abused victim, groups have instead shunned her and maintained discriminatory double standards. If "national dignity" is really something worth defending, then it first involves defending justice, upholding confidentiality and rendering all violators equally—"guilty" of whatever crime, and of whatever gender and national origin.

Written by: Jiaqi Zhang