China has taken another step on the offensive to debunk the sexual abuse allegations previously made by Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) also contributed to this this weekend.
Peng wrote on microblogging site Weibo in November that former Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli had forced her to have sex. That statement was quickly removed from the internet, and the tennis player himself disappeared from the radar for weeks. When she reappeared, she denied making the accusation.
According to a Monday issued statement from the IOC Peng and Thomas Bach, president of the IOC, dined together on Saturday inside the Olympic bubble. On the Thursday before that dinner, Bach said he wanted to ask Peng if she would like an investigation into the abuse. “And of course we would support her in that,” he added. “But it’s her decision, it’s her life, it’s her accusation,” he also said.
‘Interview’
On Sunday it once again became clear that Peng’s accusation had melted like snow in the sun. She had talked to journalists from the French sports newspaper l’Equipe, under the watchful eye of a senior official of the Chinese Olympic Committee. The questions had to be submitted in advance and could not be waived.
Read also Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai disappeared after #MeToo allegations
In the interview she denies ever accusing anyone of sexual abuse, and even that she ever disappeared. She was just too busy to respond to all the messages. She also says that she personally took her original message about the abuse from the internet.
On Monday, the IOC reported that Peng had told her to stop playing tennis, and that she would like to travel to Europe again.
The IOC is well acquainted with the Chinese state system. It therefore seems implausible that Bach makes his remarks out of sheer naivety. But how likely is it that Peng can indeed start a case in China against a senior member of the Communist Party? And how likely is it that she can freely express that wish if the Chinese government has brought her into the Olympic bubble specifically to speak with Bach under the watchful eye of the state?
Overzealous Guard
Another incident occurred in which the IOC played a curious role. Sjoerd den Daas, correspondent for the NOS, was arrested by a guard on Friday while he was on live television pulled away from the camera. It sparked international outcry: the incident was shown and discussed worldwide.
An IOC spokesman said during a press briefing on Saturday that it was an overzealous guard. “Things like that happen sometimes, hopefully it was a one-off,” the spokesperson added. He also said that the IOC had been in contact with the NOS about the incident.
The NOS denies that. “Neither the NOS management, nor the news and sports editors in chief, nor the leadership of our Olympic team in Beijing, nor our correspondent himself has spoken to anyone from the IOC about the incident,” NOS said on Saturday.
China will be pleased with the IOC’s approach on both issues. The country invests a lot in strong positions within international organizations, because it sees them as a weapon in the fight against the power of the United States. Because, as the Chinese say more and more often, it is not the US and a small group of Western allies, but international organizations that reflect the true will of the majority of the world’s population.
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