TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Further stories of sexual harassment have emerged about pro-democracy activist and a central figure in the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests, Wang Dan (王丹), during an ongoing criminal investigation into his behavior.

According to a joint investigation by UDN and Germany’s DW, at least five more people (one of whom agreed to go on record) said they had been harassed by Wang, in addition to the two men who said they had been sexually harassed by Wang when Taiwan’s #MeToo movement began to gather momentum in June. After the accusations were made against him, he was removed from his teaching position at National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) and a criminal investigation was launched by Taiwan police.

One of the accusers, using the pseudonym K, told UDN a story that reflected the experiences of other alleged victims. K said he came to admire Wang due to his public profile, and hoped that he could meet a historical figure, so contacted him through Facebook.

He said that once talking, Wang quickly turned the conversation away from political matters and suggested the pair talk about “something more private.” K said eventually, Wang contacted him and pressured him to stay overnight in his apartment in 2014.

"He kept pestering me to come to his apartment, deliberately setting the time at 9 p.m., implying I should stay overnight," K said. He said that Wang told him that because he was not one of his students, there was no ethical issue to worry about.

K said that he eventually decided to visit Wang’s home, where he alleges he was sexually assaulted by Wang after becoming intoxicated. He said he felt afraid of Wang, but said he was heavily intoxicated during the incident and his memory of specific details is hazy.

DW’s investigation spoke to a man named Rath, who was Wang’s personal assistant for many years. Rath said that he witnessed Wang harassing friends on several trips to Japan they took together, but said the alleged victims found it difficult to speak out about his actions.

"They respect Wang, hence their reluctance to resist,” Rath said, but added that both his friends expressed their discomfort at Wang’s advances. "They would prefer not being subjected to such behavior," Rath said.

Then student leader Wang Dan in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Avery, File)

He also said he had been told by a graduate student that Wang had tried to sexually harass him when the pair shared a hotel room together on a separate Japan trip. He said the student had requested a separate hotel room the next day because he was made uncomfortable by Wang.

Rath said Wang would often invite young men on international trips, and suggested he used his position as a leader of China’s democracy movement to sexually harass them. "He seems to have cultivated a sinister habit, believing his behavior is acceptable when it is not," he said.

However, Rath cautioned against tarring all with the same brush: "The fight against the Chinese Communist Party doesn't hinge on Wang Dan alone."

The UDN investigation explains that questions around Wang’s sexuality have been exploited by China in the past in information campaigns seeking to discredit him, complicating the issue. One victim decided not to go on record in the investigation and explained that “personal feelings are small things, and we must take the overall situation into account and resist the CCP.”

UDN also found that some of the alleged victims they spoke to did not want to go on record for fear of outing themselves. Meanwhile, others said that the lines between teacher-student and personal-professional relationships were blurred with Wang, making it hard to identify who was a victim.

Multiple interviewees said that Wang was often very generous to all his students. They added he also often paid for meals and leisure activities, making it difficult to identify his true intentions.

Wang has not commented on the accusations laid against him since the criminal investigation into his actions began.