Chinese retailers are cashing in on International Women’s Day, offering coupons and discounts on sportswear, cosmetics and healthcare to get women to spend more, dubbing the day “Queens’ Day” and “Goddesses’ Day”. The domination of the day by companies such as Alibaba has angered women’s rights activists, who want to reclaim the day as an opportunity to make progress on issues like combating sexual harassment. Feminist activist Xiao Meili highlighted that “The mainstream of Chinese society has not talked about real women’s rights issues on International Women’s Day for a long time.” “They don’t even dare use the three words ‘funujie’,” she said, referring to the original name of “Women’s Day” in China, which has connotations of working women.

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Reuters