NFL
By: Zachary Draves
It has been over a month since Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai publicly came forward accusing China’s former premier Zhang Gaoli, one of the men responsible for Beijing getting the 2022 Winter Olympics, of sexual assault on social media and she has not be seen or heard from since.
On Nov. 2, Peng shared on the site Weibo that Gaoli had coerced her into sex three years ago and soon after that, Chinese authorities quickly deleted the post and it has been banished online in China altogether.
Since her disappearance, there has been an international call for justice that has been organized under the hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai and many prominent athletes and even the World Tennis Association have joined in the effort.
Most notably Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, Andy Murrary, and Billie Jean King have lent their support for the movement and expressed concern of Peng’s safety.
Now Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) has officially pulled out tournaments out of China in what is clearly a bold move that will likely cost them millions but they are standing on true principle.
Both the United Nations and the White House are demanding answers from the Chinese government as the Biden Administration is considering a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games, meaning they will not be sending a delegation to the opening ceremonies which are scheduled to take place on February 4 and the games are expected to last until February 22.
Even recent video appearances of Peng and including one that shows her speaking with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach have not lessened concerns over her safety and have heightened the scrutiny leveled at the IOC due to their long standing hypocrisy and corruption.
They claim to stand for human rights through sport but yet continue to award the Olympics to various nations with horrific human rights records.
According to Human Rights Watch, China has escalated its crackdown on human rights abuses in Hong Kong, jailed political dissidents, journalists, and activists, covered up the truth about the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, restricted internet access, and have systemically tortured religious and ethnic minorities especially Muslims. https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/china-and-tibet#
The IOC again turns a blind eye and it proves they will never learn.
The advocacy organization Global Athlete, a leading force for sports and human rights, released a statement through their Executive Director Rob Koehler that was provided to Nuts and Bolts Sports that reads:
“The IOC needs to immediately suspend the Chinese Olympic Committee until confirmation can be received that Peng Shuai is safe. They tried ‘quiet diplomacy’ with Iran which sadly resulted in the execution of Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari. The IOC has more leverage than any other organization with the pending Winter Olympic Games; they need to use that leverage to ensure that the international community is provided proof of Peng’s whereabouts, that Peng is immediately given safe passage out of China, and that a full and transparent investigation is conducted into her allegations of sexual assault.. Athletes going to these games are watching how the IOC will protect athletes. The recent statement by the IOC Athlete Commission supporting ‘quiet diplomacy’ has been very concerning to athletes. it is time to show they values athlete safety over political interests.”
All this comes at a time when more awareness is being raised about China’s gross repression of human rights in the world of sports and beyond.
Some are even calling for a boycott of the Winter Olympics.
Whether that is even a possibility remains to be seen but one thing is clear and that is this can no longer be swept under the rug.
The disappearance of Pen Shuai reminds us all that there is much more at stake here and once again the IOC clearly are worried about their bottom line.
But it is refreshing to see the WTA stet up.
The IOC crito is “Athletes First” which is complete bull—- because they have worked tirelessly to try to suppress the freedom and dignity of athletes and coddling dictatorial states since 1896.
It’s time for them to either put up or shut up and if they choose the latter then they will get their comeuppance sooner than later.
#WhereIsPengShuai
