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Warning text: This article contains descriptions of sexual harassment and assault. Reader discretion is advised.
Taiwanese comedian Chen Hsuan-yu, who goes by his stage name, Nono, announced he would take a break from showbiz after around 20 victims came forward and alleged that he had sexually assaulted or harassed them.
The earliest incident happened as early as around 2003, and his victims include employees of television channels, a model, and a retail assistant.
The first accusation
Nono's past was first unearthed by a Facebook user who goes by the username Amber Chang.
In her post, Chang shared that she met a renowned comedian around a decade ago, and he asked for her number right before the recording for the television programme was about to start.
After the show, the comedian offered to send her home, to which she agreed because she would like to save money, and she trusted that a respected senior like him would not do anything inappropriate.
On the way, the comedian suddenly said he wanted to stop at Dadaocheng and grab a bite.
However, when he got off the car, he forced a hug on her and pulled her to the backseat before forcing himself upon her.
Even though Chang tried to resist his advances, the comedian continued to kiss her and rub her breasts.
He even tried to pull down her underwear before pulling her onto his lap and rubbing his private part against hers.
On their way to her home, he only told a few lewd jokes and did not apologise to her at all.
Chang also said that a friend advised her to expose him to media outlets back then, but she worried that the public would only think of her as someone who wanted fame, especially considering her newcomer status back then.
"Can't recall Chang or the incident": Nono
While Chang didn't name the comedian in her post, people online soon identified the person to be Nono based on the characteristics she provided.
In response to Chang's allegations, Nono shared that he could not recall the incident or who Chang was, Taiwanese media TVBS reported his manager as saying.
"If I did something wrong, I would admit it. However, how can I respond to things I can't even remember?" the comedian added.
More victims came forward
Nono's indifferent attitude, however, only triggered more victims to come forward with their testimonies.
One of them was live-streamer Anissa, who is also known by her online pseudonym Xiaohonglaoshi (小红老师).
In a Facebook post on Jun. 20, Anissa shared that she was angered by Nono's denial of his wrongdoings even amidst the ongoing #MeToo movement in Taiwan.
Earlier this week, another Taiwanese host, Mickey Huang, admitted to an incident, which happened a decade ago, where he had forcefully kissed a 17-year-old and manipulated her into taking nude photos in the name of art.
According to Anissa, she also got to know Nono after he asked for her number upon they finished filming for a show together.
Over their next few collaborations, she could sense that he was trying to help her, so she had a lot of respect for him.
This was why she decided to ask for his help when a manager of a professional baseball player forced himself upon her in a hotel after they finished filming that evening.
A few days after the incident, Nono called her and told her he would come over to find her.
Anissa agreed to get in his car, thinking they were friends and he would not behave like other men, as he had previously saved her from the manager.
To her surprise, Nono told her, "The manager didn't know his place. How can he get a taste [of you] when I haven't?"
Later on, he began touching Anissa's thigh while driving and slid his hands into her underwear.
Despite being asked to stop, Nono forced a kiss on her while waiting for the traffic light.
He even asked her whether she liked it or not with a smile. She added that while she knew she should have gotten off the car, she froze in that moment.
Afterwards, Nono drove Anissa to a dimly-lit park and said he would like to take a walk.
He then grabbed her, forced her to sit on his lap, and began rubbing her breast, butt, and legs, ignoring her resistance.
Anissa's nightmare only ended after she asked Nono to send her home because her aunt was waiting.
In the car, Nono told her she could stay at his home in Neihu if she ever came to Taipei again.
Bombarded her with calls afterwards
After the incident, Nono also began to bombard Anissa with calls every day.
She also received a message from him at a later date in which he asked her to visit him in a hotel in Tainan, but she didn't reply.
Anissa said Nono had also used the "poking" function on Facebook to reach out to her after he got married and became a father.
She said she would begin trembling upon seeing his poke and felt disgusted by his behaviour.
At the end of the post, Anissa said she decided to come forward amidst the recent #MeToo movement in Taiwan so that she could speak up for her past self, who was unable to fight back against seniors like Nono.
Around 20 victims reached out to Anissa
In a follow-up post on the evening of Jun. 20, Anissa announced that she would be hosting a press conference the next day to help Nono recall his wrongdoings.
She also shared that she would be sharing testimonies from around 20 victims who have reached out to her privately.
At the beginning of the press conference, Anissa said while the events might not register with Nono, they had been haunting his victims for their entire lives.
For her, she had to rely on sleeping pills to go to bed every night after Nono sexually harassed her.
Specifically, the live-streamer also highlighted one case in which Nono allegedly pulled a retail assistant into a handicapped bathroom and sexually assaulted her without any protection.
Annisa stated that Nono's response had re-victimised every woman who had to live under his shadow and hoped he could acknowledge and apologise for his wrongdoings.
She also warned that more people would come forward with their testimonies if he continued refusing to admit his mistakes.
Nono's response
A few hours after Anissa's press conference, Nono announced via a Facebook post that he will be taking a break from showbiz to "deeply and sincerely reflect".
However, the brief note did not state clearly what he will be reflecting about. Nono did not address the allegations directly on his Facebook post too.
She also asked the comedian why he was not as audacious as when he sexually harassed or assaulted his victims back then.
"[You] should learn from others. Have a bit more guts, OK?" the live-streamer added.
Top images via ET Today & 陳宣裕/Facebook