Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai accused ex-Chinese official of sexual assault

Peng Shuai, a 35-year-old Chinese tennis player and former world doubles No.1, published a long post on Weibo on Nov 2, 2021, accused Zhang Gaoli, now 75, a former high-ranking Chinese government official, of sexual assault. Zhang Gaoli is a former vice premier who served on China’s Politburo Standing Committee and was one of the country’s most powerful officials behind President Xi Jinping.

In the post, Peng Shuai wrote that Zhang had forced her to have sex despite repeated refusals, giving the timeline of her on-and-off affairs with Zhang during the past 10 years. The post was removed within 20 minutes from her verified account on Weibo, and even her name became a censored word. Since then, Peng hasn’t posted again on the site or been seen in public for 3 weeks.

Now, her safety and whereabouts have become a growing concern among her peers, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and the White House. And a campaign #whereispengshuai intitiated by Chinese feminists to located the disappeared tennis star has gone global. Many of the world’s biggest tennis stars, including Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, and Andy Murray, have posted messages on Twitter with the hashtag.

The outcry prompted Chinese state media to release a series of photographs and videos that appeared to show all was well.

Over the weekend, Peng had a video call with the head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), after which a statement from the group said she had appeared safe and well. 

But concerns over her safety and well-being remain.

Human Rights Watch criticized the IOC over the video call, saying its “collaboration” with Chinese authorities on Ms. Peng’s reappearance “undermines its expressed commitment to human rights, including the rights and safety of athletes”.