Equality

[Big read] Safe, but fragile: The rise of women-only spaces in China

Women-only homestays, gyms and bookstores are booming in China, offering safety and solidarity. Yet closures and debates highlight the limits of segregated spaces and the challenges of sustaining a women-only economy. Lianhe Zaobao Associate China News Editor Chen Jing finds out more.

Chen Jing

28 Jan 2026

[Big read] China’s superwomen are winning on screen: Empowerment or illusion?

China’s newest hit dramas celebrate unstoppable heroines — generals, tycoons, and perfect all-rounders. But scholars and viewers question whether this surge in “superwomen” reflects real empowerment or just another comforting illusion. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Liu Sha speaks to viewers, academics and those in the industry to find out more.

Liu Sha

10 Dec 2025

[Big read] Tiny steps, big change: How everyday efforts are building an inclusive Guangzhou

Every week, volunteers like Feifei travel across Guangzhou to teach skills to visually impaired residents. These small acts — training, apps, accessible facilities — are just the beginning of building a truly inclusive society, with much more still to be done. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Zeng Shi reports.

Zeng Shi

18 Nov 2025

[Big read] Why China’s funniest women are also its most controversial

As Chinese female stand-up comedians challenge deep-rooted gender norms, critics accuse them of fuelling gender divides. But comedy is only exposing what has long festered across film, gaming, and public life. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Zeng Shi finds out more.

Zeng Shi

15 Sep 2025

The unpaid workforce: How housework fuels gender inequality in China

In modern society, care work has developed into a specialised profession known as domestic services. However, the unpaid nature of household labour, which are largely taken up by women, leads people to overlook its existence, its heavy burden and its value, says academic Zhang Tiankan.

Zhang Tiankan

01 Apr 2025

In marriage, do us apart: Changing family forms in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai [Eye on JiangZheHu series]

Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai’s dynamic economy, great social mobility, rising cost of living, exorbitant housing prices, intense competition and costly childcare have prompted a shift towards a wider variety of family forms to cope with these modern challenges. These pragmatic and innovative family and marriage arrangements have enriched the Chinese family system, asserts US academic Xiaoling Shu.

Xiaoling Shu

17 Jan 2025

[Big read] China women’s long march towards equality

The advent of social media has been a double-edged sword for women’s rights and gender equality movements in China. Though social media helps promote awareness of such issues, it also enables reactionary resistance to these movements and even misogynistic abuse. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Miao Zong-Han discusses the issue.

Miao Zong-Han

08 Jan 2025

Egg freezing in China: A woman's right to have control over her body

Currently in China, assisted reproductive technology (ART) can only be applied to married couples with infertility issues. Social egg freezing (SEF) is prohibited in most regions of China, except Jilin province. The case of Xu Zaozao, a single lady who sought to freeze her eggs, has cast more attention on this issue. Chinese academic Lorna Wei points out that even as women advocate for the right to decide if she would like to freeze her eggs, they may be stuck in a continuing patriarchal trap.

Lorna S. Wei

14 Jul 2023

Taiwan's #MeToo: A progressive Taiwanese society's attempt at challenging patriarchy

Commentator Gu Erde notes the recent spate of allegations of sexual offences against notable figures in Taiwan, most prominently from within the Democratic Progressive Party itself. This has put the ruling party in the eye of the #MeToo storm, with victims coming forward to speak out. What does this furore say about patriarchal chauvinism in Taiwan's wider society and culture?

Gu Erde

26 Jun 2023

Why first-generation Chinese immigrants in the UK fear speaking up

Freelance writer He Yue muses about why first-generation Chinese immigrants in the UK are keeping silent about Chinese politics, even for those who have opinions about what is happening in China. It seems that the opportunities for democracy and freedom while living abroad are still not enough to get them to share how they really feel, even in private chat groups among friends.

Yue He Parkinson

30 Jan 2023

Female representation in the Chinese leadership: Countdown to CCP's 20th Party Congress

Li Cheng, director of the John L. Thornton China Center of the Brookings Institution, notes that while the Mao-era slogan of "women hold up half the sky" is often repeated, only one woman serves on the current 25-member Politburo (4%), and no woman has ever served on the Politburo Standing Committee, the supreme decision-making body in the country. He asks: what are the prospects for women leaders at the 20th Party Congress? Who are the prominent female candidates for the upper echelons of the CCP leadership?

Li Cheng

19 Aug 2022

US academic: Equality is a myth, whether in the US or China

Wu Guo notes that equality is very much a mirage, whether in the socialist or liberal democracy conception of the term. The sum total of one's head start in life is often tied to his or her family background. And often, no amount of levelling up can change that. But this does not mean that equality is of no relevance or should not be aspired to. Adopting an attitude of equality can help ensure that people's rights are protected, even if the ideal of equality may never be achieved.

Wu Guo

14 Feb 2022