Peng Shuai apparently made a public appearance in China after weeks of silence.
THE allegedly missing tennis player Peng Shuai, has made a public appearance at a youth tournament in Beijing on Sunday.
Shuai was seen in the photos released by the organizer, as the ruling Communist Party tried to quell fears abroad while suppressing information in China about an alleged sexual assault.
A video of the event, posted on Twitter by Hu Xijin, influential editor of the “Global Times”, shows her standing in the middle of a group of guests whose names are announced to the applauding audience.
Hu who claims a certain proximity to power also published in the evening two videos of the player “having dinner with her coach and friends in a restaurant” in Beijing and toured the same day, according to him.
In the images, Peng Shuai is surrounded by two women with whom she shares a meal and wine in a noisy place.
A man is seated opposite the player and the conversation is about “games”. “Tomorrow is November 20,” he said, before being interrupted by one of the guests: “It’s the 21”.
The exchange, which seems to be staged, is filmed in the evening on a cell phone by an unidentified person. Peng Shuai appears relaxed there.
Last November 2, Shuai accused former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli had "forced" her into sex during a long-term on-off relationship. A public sexual assault allegation against a senior Chinese official is virtually unheard of in a country where officials guard their personal lives closely.
World Tennis Association President Steve Simon has been vocal of his support for Shuai.
Even with the reported email that Peng Shuai sent to him after her disappearance, Simon still has his doubts.
After the released photos of Shuai reappearing in the public, he sent a statement saying that he found it “positive” to see the athlete, but “the video alone is not sufficient” to show that she is “free to make decisions and his actions, ” he said.
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