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The whereabouts of former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Ga-ori, who revealed that Chinese tennis star Feng Shen-yi sexually assaulted him, are also unknown.
Reuters reported on the 25th (local time) that “Former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaori has not appeared in public for the last time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party on July 1.”
Former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Ga-ori has been silent for nearly a month after Feng Shunyi’s revelations. Former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang, who retired in 2018, served as a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China from 2012 to 2017. The Politburo Standing Committee is the highest group of the Communist Party, and is also a member of President Xi Jinping.
Meanwhile, on the 24th (local time), the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Zhang Gaori was deeply involved in the bid and preparations for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
According to the WSJ, “Former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang is now a retired member of the Communist Party, but during his tenure as a powerful and skilled tech bureaucrat, he pushed ahead with China’s top priorities, including hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics.”
Meanwhile, Peng, who ranked first in the world in women’s doubles in tennis, revealed on China’s social media Weibo on the 2nd that she was sexually assaulted by former Deputy Prime Minister Zhang Gaori. Peng said that he had sex with former deputy prime minister Zhang Ga-ori and his wife, who went to his house to play tennis. However, it did not specify exactly when that happened.
He continued, “I cried and refused all the time, but because I was afraid, I had no choice but to agree.”
However, the post was deleted in 20 minutes, and Peng’s whereabouts were unknown for several weeks, leading to speculations such as confinement rumors and hospitalization rumors.
Then, on the 18th, Chinese state broadcaster CGTN reported that Peng had emailed Steve Simon, the head of the Women’s Professional Tennis (WTA) tour, saying that Peng was “resting at home.” According to CGTN’s official Twitter account that day, Peng said, “I haven’t disappeared. I’m resting at home.” In addition, the e-mail contains the content that all recent reports about him, including the news of sexual assault, are not true.
However, Chairman Simon raised suspicions of manipulation, saying, “I have doubts about the e-mail writing.”
CNN reported that Simon claimed in a statement that “it is doubtful whether the e-mail was written by Shun Feng himself or who wrote it.” It is also claimed that the e-mail has been tampered with on social media.
Netizens heard that a typing cursor appeared in the e-mail photo that was released for that reason. If the email has been written, the cursor cannot be placed in the middle of the sentence. He also pointed out that the phrase “Hello everyone” in the first sentence is a questionable topic.
In a letter to Chairman Simon, it is common to mention the name, but it is claimed that he said ‘you’, which means an unspecified majority.
In response, Peng made a video call with IOC Chairman Thomas Bach on the 21st to inform him of his safety.
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