China silent on missing tennis star, despite global pressure

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By HUIZHONG WU

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — An email purportedly from a Chinese professional tennis player that a Chinese state media outlet posted on Twitter has increased concerns about her safety as the sport’s biggest stars and others abroad call for information about her well-being and whereabouts.

So far, those calls have been met by silence.

Chinese officials have said nothing publicly since the accusation about two weeks ago by Grand Slam doubles champion Peng Shuai that she was sexually assaulted by a former top government official. The first #MeToo case to reach the political realm in China has not been reported by the domestic media and online discussion of it has been highly censored.

Steve Simon, the chairman and CEO of the Women’s Tennis Association, questioned the authenticity of the email intended for him, in which Peng says she is safe and that the assault allegation is untrue. It was posted Thursday by CGTN, the international arm of Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.



FILE - China's Shuai Peng plays a shot against Romania's Sorana Cirstea during their first round match of the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium, in Paris, France. Tuesday, May 30, 2017. Chinese authorities have squelched virtually all online discussion of sexual assault accusations apparently made by the Chinese professional tennis star against a former top government official, showing how sensitive the ruling Communist Party is to such charges. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)


Read more: https://apnews.com/article/sports-business-china-media-tennis-32130d1aea7fe90563e28aaaaf7c212d

[Ford_Prefect]

1. I've got a bad feeling about this one...

[Irish_Dem]

2. Same here, not looking good is it?

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Re-education camp for the greater glorification of Historic President Xi & the noble Communist Party

... NOT.

Xi and the CCP are not only racist but sexist.

I'm not surprised, kinda knew it.

This is what happens when a regime or a party will accept NO criticism.

The RepubliQon Party will accept NO criticism of Historic president Chairman tRump, his Orangeness. Ask Kinzinger and Liz Cheney.

[cstanleytech]

7. Not to mention they fully embrace videos depicting murder

of members of Congress when said video depicts a Democrat being murdered.

[oldsoftie]

4. And yet Disney, the NBA and many others continue to bend over for China.

We MUST stop sending them our money

[Raftergirl]

5. Hopefully

Peng will be found safe and sound. But it’s obvious that Peng did not write that email unless under duress and told what to write.

And hopefully the WTA pulls out of the China market. They have made boatloads of money there but, as a fan, watching players playing in huge empty stadium year after year is very depressing. WTA made the decision to chase the money by going there.

Meanwhile, because all the tourneys in China were canceled because of CV, the WTA Championship was just held in Guadalajara and the crowds were amazing and pop up tourneys in the US and Europe filled the huge gap in the schedule by the cancellations in China.

[mpcamb]

9. They need to forcefeed her the proper lines to say before dragging her out publicly.

[pecosbob]

6. Heard about this a couple of weeks ago on a Chinese expat blog

She went public on Weibo. It's unprecedented in China to have something like this come out.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

8. I wonder if this could cause a multi-nation boycott of the Olympics. nt