China Foreign Ministry stays quiet on whereabouts of Peng
China’s Foreign Ministry on Friday stuck to its line that it wasn’t aware of the controversy surrounding tennis player Peng Shuai, who disappeared after accusing a former top official of sexually assaulting her.
Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian told reporters that the matter was “not a diplomatic question and I’m not aware of the situation.”
The ministry consistently has disavowed knowledge of the issue since Peng made her accusation more than two weeks ago.
The 35-year-old former topranked player in women’s doubles won titles at Wimbledon in 2013 and the French Open in 2014. Peng also participated in three Olympics, making her disappearance all the more prominent with Beijing set to host the Winter Games starting Feb. 4.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday that Chinese authorities should “provide independent and verifiable proof of her whereabouts and that she is safe.”
Liz Throssell, a spokeswoman for the U.N. human rights office in Geneva, said Friday it was calling for “an investigation with full transparency into her allegation of sexual assault.”
The International Olympic Committee declined to comment Friday, saying in an emailed statement: “Experience shows that quiet diplomacy offers the best opportunity to find a solution for questions of such nature.”
Peng wrote in a lengthy social-media post Nov. 2 that she was forced to have sex three years ago with Zhang Gaoli in his home despite repeated refusals. Zhang, 75, is a former vice premier who was a member of the ruling Communist Party’s all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee.
The post quickly was deleted from Peng’s verified account on Weibo, a leading Chinese social-media
platform, but screenshots of the explosive accusation were shared on the internet.
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Ruud showed off aggressive tactics in the decisive tiebreaker and served an ace on his second match point in a 2-6, 7-5, 7-6 (5) victory over Andrey Rublev in his final round-robin match to secure his unexpected spot in the last four.
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