The case is far from being buried.
Members of the international community were recently pressuring the Chinese government to find out what really happened to tennis player Peng Shuai during the three weeks of her disappearance.
On November 2, in a message posted on Weibo, the country's main social network, the 35-year-old indeed accuses Zhang Gaolin, former Deputy Prime Minister from 2013 to 2018, of having raped her.
Then disappears, giving no more sign of life.
"I never said that someone attacked me"
Since her reappearance, seventeen days later, in videos published by people close to the Beijing power, the question of whether she is alive no longer arises.
But these images fail to reassure those who are worried about the pressures that could be placed on the player.
Now the question is elsewhere: is Peng Shuai free?
The first interview with the champion after her disappearance, granted on Sunday, December 19 to the daily
Lianhe Zaobao
, only
raises
more concerns.
Read also "
Tennis: Shuai Peng denounces" misunderstandings "and denies accusations of sexual assault
Peng Shuai declares that there has been "a lot of misunderstanding" around this "private" affair.
Before ensuring that she never made any allegations of sexual assault.
"I want to stress a very important point: I have never said or written that someone had sexually assaulted me", she emphasizes.
She also maintains that she is free to move and make decisions.
Words that are not enough to reassure the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) "as to its well-being and its ability to communicate without censorship or coercion".
In video, missing for 19 days, tenniswoman Peng Shuai reappears
The rape charges
At 35, Peng Shuai is one of the best tennis players in China and around the world. Holder of four titles in the singles category, she was 14th in the WTA world rankings in 2011. Her record is even more impressive when she plays in doubles: world number 1 in February 2014, she won 24 trophies including one in the Wimbledon tournament in 2013 and another at Roland Garros in 2014. Being a real star in his country, it did not take long for his words to be quickly repeated.
In her post, the player accused the politician Zhang Gaolin of having raped her, in 2018, before starting an extra-marital relationship with her.
Half an hour later, the publication was removed, an immediate effect of the censorship applied by the Chinese government.
But enough time had passed for the post to be picked up and shared around the world.
Before that, a few days later, a murmur of concern spreads on social networks, the player having totally disappeared.
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Where is Peng Shuai?
On November 11, the hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai
(in French: “Where is Peng Shuai?” Editor's note)
appears on Twitter. At that time, it has been nine days since the champion has given signs of life on social media and appeared publicly. Celebrities from the world of tennis, such as Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka or Novak Djokovic, are mobilizing and relaying the hashtag. Steve Simon, the president of the WTA, goes so far as to threaten Beijing to withdraw the lucrative tournaments being played in China if it does not obtain proof of life from Peng Shuai. And claims to have tried to reach her by all means, in vain.
Concerns about the fate of the player will even take on an international political scale when Joe Biden threatens to boycott the Winter Olympics which are to be held in Beijing from February 4 to 20.
If Washington does not justify its threats by directly invoking the disappearance of Peng Shuai, the fact that the American president points the finger at the violations of human rights in China is enough to make the link.
The email that stirs up concern
On November 17, an email purportedly written by Peng Shuai and addressed to the WTA was broadcast by
CGTN
, a Chinese television station known to relay the word of the government.
"The recent information, including the accusations of sexual assault, is false," it is written.
I am resting at home and everything is fine. "
But these words fail to appease Steve Simon who immediately responds in a statement: "This statement only increases my concern about his situation and his security."
I find it hard to believe that Peng Shuai actually wrote the email we received, nor do I believe what is attributed to him. ”
Before asking for "independent and verifiable proof".
Unconvincing images
On November 19, photos of Peng Shuai were posted to Twitter by Shen Shiwei, a reporter affiliated with the Chinese government. We see the young woman smiling, surrounded by soft toys and playing with a cat. The next day and the day after, it is another close to power, Hu Xijin, who publishes images of the player. Two videos which show her at the restaurant, surrounded by her trainer and friends, then in a stadium, for a sports meeting. Again, the evidence is insufficient in the eyes of Steve Simon who said in a statement: "Although it is positive to see her, it remains difficult to know if she is free, and able to make decisions and act by itself, without coercion or outside interference. "
On November 21, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Yves Le Drian, also said he was skeptical.
“I'm just waiting for one thing, and Ms. Peng Shuai to speak.
And if the Chinese authorities want to shed some light, they must allow Ms. Peng Shuai to speak, to say where she is, how she lives, what she does, how she is preparing for the Olympics ” , he said at
LCI's
microphone
.
Peng Shuai live
On November 22, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said its president, Thomas Bach, had videoconferenced with the tennis player.
In a statement, the IOC reports that Peng Shuai "explained that she was safe and sound at her home in Beijing but that she would like her privacy to be respected."
What definitely reassure those who were worried about the fate of the player?
Always not.
According to the
New York Times
, Peng Shuai was accompanied during the interview by a "friend" to help her express herself in English.
She who, according to
Le Monde
, nevertheless speaks the language fluently after fifteen years on the international circuit.
The Olympics in danger
Far from remaining a news item, the Peng Shuai affair is gaining momentum and is likely to have an impact on the Olympic Games to come.
According to Pierre Haski, columnist for
France Inter
and journalist for
L'Obs
, "If nothing important happens in this affair, in the coming weeks, there will be a political boycott of the Olympic Games."
It remains to be seen what the attitude of the Chinese government will be.
* This article, originally published on November 22, 2021, has been updated.
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