Wang, a 31-year-old Chinese woman, expected nothing unusual as she sat in the restaurant with her three friends. But suddenly a man came up and started touching her - first on her back and then on her face. "What are you doing?" she shouted. "What's wrong with you? Get lost!" Then he slapped her.

As the two fought, one of Wang's friends grabbed a bottle and hit the attacker. Then several men rushed over; one seized Wang by her hair and pulled her out into the street. There she was hit and kicked until her shirt was covered in blood. When one of her friends tried to stop them, she was pushed to the ground.

Within a day, a surveillance video of the attack in TangshanA city 100 miles east of Beijing. had gone viral. But some media outlets told their own version of the story. A Beijing news app reported that the man had simply "struck up a conversation" with Wang, and that the other men had joined in to "counter the women". The Feidian video channel said that "conflict erupted from both sides".

Journalists who tried to investigate the incident were arrested or turned away. And two days later, when WeiboOne of the most popular social networks in China, where platforms like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are banned. announced a crackdown on "harmful speech", many people guessed that it was feminist protesters they had in mind. Within 48 hours it had banned 1,000 users, suspended 8,000 more, and removed 14,000 posts. Nothing that "incited gender conflict" would be tolerated.

China's Communist Party used to support feminism. "Women hold up half the sky," said Mao ZedongA revolutionary leader, also known as Chairman Mao, who ruled China as head of the Communist Party from 1949 until 1976., who did much to improve their rights when he came to power. Forced marriages and prostitution were banned, and women were given the right to divorce their husbands.

But according to The New York Times, "in recent decades, as market economics took hold in China, unapologetic male chauvinismThe blind belief that the group you belong to is superior to all others. It is commonly applied to anti-feminist men. re-emerged, and with it, traditional notions of a woman's role in the family".

This has become even more pronounced since president Xi Jinping came to power in 2012. China has fallen from 69th to 107th in the World Economic ForumAn independent organisation based in Switzerland which is committed to improving the world.'s list of countries which most respect women's rights. There are no women on the ruling Politburo Standing Committee.

Xi stresses the role of women as wives and mothers, and his government has cracked down on feminist campaigners.

In 2015, two prominent feminists led a protest against domestic violence by marching through Beijing wearing white wedding dresses splashed with red paint. Others shaved their heads to protest against universities which made it harder for female applicants¹ to get places than male ones. As a result, five women were arrested for "provoking social instability".

Other complaints have met with hostility from officials. A woman called Gao Xiao who sued a restaurant for discrimination when it passed her over for a chef's job received a visit from the police. When the tennis star Peng Shuai said on social media that a senior politician² had forced her to have sex with him, her post was deleted and she disappeared. She now says that nothing happened - but few people believe her.    

Yes: Chinese censors commonly remove posts containing terms that feminists use, such as "sexual harassment", and hashtags such as #MeToo. Feminist demonstrators run the risk of arrest.

No: The Communist Party has such a strong grip on the country that it does not need to fear any groups. Far-reaching laws mean that any form of dissent can be dealt with swiftly by the police.

Or... The government is afraid not just of feminism but of any movement or organisation which does not directly support it. The memory of the Tiananmen Square protests is still too fresh for comfort.

Tangshan - A city 100 miles east of Beijing.

Weibo - One of the most popular social networks in China, where platforms like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are banned.

Mao Zedong - A revolutionary leader, also known as Chairman Mao, who ruled China as head of the Communist Party from 1949 until 1976.

Chauvinism - The blind belief that the group you belong to is superior to all others. It is commonly applied to anti-feminist men.

World Economic Forum - An independent organisation based in Switzerland which is committed to improving the world.