Alibaba employee fired after disclosing sexual assault warns going public causes victims ‘hurt’

The employee’s case prompted a public outcry over the handling of sexual assault cases in China (Andy Wong/AP)

An employee of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba who was fired after she went public with a sexual assault allegation has said she is not encouraging other victims in China to come forward because doing so “will only cause them to suffer more hurt”.

The employee, whose surname is Zhou, had gone public in August with accusations that a fellow employee had sexually assaulted her during a business trip.