Tennis
Although his complaint of sexual assault against a former vice premier is censored in China, state journalists broadcast overseas videos on Twitter of his presence at a children’s tournament and a dinner, but without speaking
After almost three weeks missing after denouncing sexual abuse by a former senior official of the Chinese regime, tennis player Peng Shuai was shown at a public event this Sunday in Beijing. On the social network Twitter, which is censored in this country but can be accessed with an overseas connection (VPN), two prominent state media journalists have broadcast videos of Peng attending a children’s tennis tournament in the Chinese capital. . In these short images, which barely last a minute, the player appears smiling, waving, applauding the sports authorities who accompany her and signing autographs for the children, but she says nothing.
In what clearly appear to be appearances orchestrated to quell international criticism for his disappearance, another one-minute video allegedly recorded Saturday night at a dinner with his coach has also circulated. In it, Peng Shuai also does not speak; he only agrees to the coach’s speech, who curiously makes a mistake and says “tomorrow, November 20.” At that moment, another woman at the table corrects him and clarifies that “tomorrow” (for today) is November 21.
Peng Shuai showed up at the opening ceremony of a teenager tennis match final in Beijing on Sunday morning. Global Times photo reporter Cui Meng captured her at scene. pic.twitter.com/7wlBcTMgGy
Hu Xijin 胡锡 进 (@HuXijin_GT) November 21, 2021
With these appearances, the Chinese regime wants to appease the malaise that the disappearance of Peng Shuai has unleashed in the tennis world. There had been no news of her since the night of November 2, when she posted on the Weibo social network a long and heartfelt comment denouncing an alleged sexual assault by former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli, whom she had been a lover of for years.
While his text was erased by censorship and his Weibo profile was blocked so that no comments could be left, Peng disappeared without a trace, as often happens with those who dare to criticize the authoritarian Chinese regime. After a week, the different world tennis associations and their main stars, such as Serena WILLIAMAS, Naomi Osaka and Novak Djokovic, asked for explanations about his whereabouts and launched a campaign on social networks with the label in English #whereispengshuai (Where? is Peng Shuai?).
Although the official press does not publish news about Peng and the information is censored on the internet for affecting a former leader, some journalists from state media are broadcasting messages on the blocked Twitter to deny his enforced disappearance abroad. The European public television channel CGTN began on Wednesday with an alleged email sent by the player to the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA, in English). In it he denied the complaint of sexual assault and that she was missing, but few believed the message and the president of the WTA, Steve Simon, publicly doubted its authenticity because he had not been able to contact Peng Shuai.
Over the days, the scandal was made worse by the wave of solidarity carried out by numerous elite athletes, from Feliciano López to Gerard Piqué. To the point that the WTA has threatened to take away China’s tennis tournaments if the whereabouts of Peng Shuai were not clarified. In addition, criticism has fueled calls for a boycott of the Winter Olympics, which are held in February in Beijing.
As proof of life, on Saturday alleged photos of Peng Shuai at his home appeared on the WeChat social network, which were not reported by the Chinese media but were instantly retweeted by some journalists from the official press to be seen in the Foreign. In them the tennis player appears with a cat in a room with many stuffed animals. Strangely, he wears summer clothes, a T-shirt and shorts, which collides with the cold it is now in Beijing even if he turns the heating in his home to maximum. And, also very curious, in another image a portrait of Peng is seen in the background with a figure of the Winnie the Pooh bear, the nickname that dissidents have given Chinese President Xi Jinping.
But neither these photos nor the video of the dinner have satisfied the president of the WTA, Steve Simon, who on Saturday was “happy” to see Peng but considered it “insufficient”. “Although it is positive to see her, it remains unclear whether she is free and capable of making decisions for herself, without coercion or external influence,” he said in a statement. Insisting that he remains “concerned for the health and safety of Peng Shuai and the allegation of sexual assault that has been censored and hidden under the rug,” Simon recalls that he has called for an investigation and warns that “our relationship with China is in trouble. a crossroads ».
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