The UN yesterday said it wants proof of the whereabouts of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai (彭帥), missing ever since she made sexual assault allegations against a former Chinese vice premier.
The UN Human Rights Office called for a fully transparent investigation into the former Grand Slam doubles champion’s claims against Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli (張高麗), while the head of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) said he is prepared to cut lucrative business ties with China if Peng remains unaccounted for and her allegations are not investigated.
“It would be important to have proof of her whereabouts and well-being and we would urge that there be an investigation with full transparency into her allegations of sexual assault,” Liz Throssell, a spokeswoman for UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet, told reporters in Geneva, Switzerland.
Photo: AP
Peng, 35, who won the Wimbledon and the French Open women’s doubles titles with Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei (謝淑薇), alleged on Sina Weibo on Nov. 2 that Zhang had “forced” her into sex during a long-term, on-off relationship.
The claims were quickly scrubbed from the platform and she has not been seen since, drawing mounting concern over her well-being.
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Zhao Lijian (趙立堅) yesterday stuck to the government’s line that it was not aware of the controversy surrounding Peng.
Zhao again said it was “not a diplomatic question and I’m not aware of the situation.”
The ministry has consistently disavowed knowledge of the issue since Peng made her accusation more than two weeks ago.
WTA chairman Steve Simon on Thursday told CNN that he is willing to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in Chinese business in one of the organization’s biggest markets to ensure Peng’s safety.
“We’re definitely willing to pull our business and deal with all the complications that come with it,” Simon said.
“Women need to be respected and not censored,” he added.
Meanwhile, Serena Williams on Thursday joined Naomi Osaka and Novak Djokovic in drawing attention to the case.
“I am devastated and shocked to hear about the news of my peer, Peng Shuai,” former world No. 1 Williams wrote on Twitter.
“I hope she is safe and found as soon as possible. This must be investigated and we must not stay silent,” she said.
Williams’ tweet was accompanied by a photograph of a smiling Peng captioned with #WhereIsPengShuai.
Peng also competed in three Olympics, making her disappearance all the more prominent with Beijing set to host the Winter Games starting on Feb. 4
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) declined to comment yesterday, saying in an e-mailed statement: “Experience shows that quiet diplomacy offers the best opportunity to find a solution for questions of such nature. This explains why the IOC will not comment any further at this stage.”
Additional reporting by AP
Taiwan has arranged for about 8 million barrels of crude oil, or about one-third of its monthly needs, to be shipped from the Red Sea this month to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and ease domestic supply pressures, CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) said yesterday. The state-run oil company has worked with Middle Eastern suppliers to secure routes other than the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas typically passes, CPC chairman Fang Jeng-zen (方振仁) said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. Suppliers in Saudi Arabia have indicated they
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
CCP ‘PAWN’? Beijing could use the KMT chairwoman’s visit to signal to the world that many people in Taiwan support the ‘one China’ principle, an academic said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) yesterday arrived in China for a “peace” mission and potential meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), while a Taiwanese minister detailed the number of Chinese warships currently deployed around the nation. Cheng is visiting at a time of increased Chinese military pressure on Taiwan, as the opposition-dominated Legislative Yuan stalls a government plan for US$40 billion in extra defense spending. Speaking to reporters before going to the airport, Cheng said she was going on a “historic journey for peace,” but added that some people felt uneasy about her trip. “If you truly love Taiwan,
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
RSS