On 2 November 2021, Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai posted on Weibo that she had been involved in an extramarital affair with retired Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli. She wrote that Zhang had pressed her to have sex with him three years earlier, and that their relationship had recently come to an end, but in the end agreed to have sex and renewed their relationship. Information about her story was censored by the Chinese government. Peng then disappeared until November 21, when she appeared at a tennis tournament in China on state media. She also wrote e-mails, and did interviews, in which she denied making accusations of sexual assault. The incident elicited international concern over her safety, whereabouts, and ability to communicate freely, and the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) suspended all its events in China. Peng was reportedly seen in public on a few occasions since the incident. Despite dissatisfaction with the status of the case, the WTA announced its return to the country in 2023 after it emerged from COVID-19 lockdowns.
Background and allegation On 2 November 2021, Peng posted a lengthy message on her Weibo account where, according to several media outlets, she accused Zhang Gaoli, a retired Chinese vice-premier and member of the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), of forcing or pressuring her into sex three years previously. Deutsche Welle, SET News, and United Daily News provided screenshots of her post, where Peng mentioned another sexual encounter with him seven years or more earlier. Zhang, who was 40 years her senior, had pursued her first. Upon his appointment to the PSC, he stopped contacting her. Following his retirement which was three years before her post, Zhang and his wife brought Peng to their home after a tennis game. He wanted to be intimate with Peng, who cried and refused at first. After having supper with the couple and some further persuasion from Zhang, Peng relented and agreed to have sex because she still had feelings for him, even though she was also scared.
The incident rekindled their affair and Peng wrote that they would at times talk for hours, play chess and tennis, and "getting along so well that everything just felt right". Every time she visited Zhang, however, Peng suffered humiliation from his wife's verbal abuse. Zhang had said that while he loved Peng, divorcing his wife was politically impossible, and Peng lamented about the importance of title and status ("名分"). Following a dispute on 30 October, with Zhang seemingly about to "disappear" on her again, Peng came out with her account, despite not having made any audio or video recordings as evidence of her relationship with Zhang. According to Shannon Tiezzie of The Diplomat, unhappiness with the hidden nature of the relationship and repeated slights apparently caused Peng to post her story.
While Chinese authorities have charged officials in the past with sexual misconduct under corruption, this was the first time a member of the top echelon of the CCP has faced public allegations. Cindy Yu, writing for The Spectator, alleged that some of China's rich, successful men, including some party officials, have mistresses. She noted that since Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign commenced in 2012, about 100,000 officials indicted have had an extramarital affair.
Peng's post drew attention to the #MeToo movement in China, which in 2021 saw the arrest of Kris Wu and the firing of a male Alibaba executive after widespread discussions online and criticism from state media. In contrast, all discussions about Peng came under censorship in China. Her post disappeared from Weibo within 20 minutes of being uploaded, although screenshots of it were saved. Despite this, knowledge of the news continued to circulate in some form in China, with #MeToo activist Zhou Xiaoxuan expressing sympathy for Peng.
Disappearance and aftermath
Approximately 30 minutes after making the Weibo post, the post disappeared and references to Peng Shuai disappeared from China's internet. Peng stopped communicating on social media. When asked about her whereabouts on 3 November, foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said, "I have not heard of the issue you raised. This is not a diplomatic question". On 17 November, reporters put the question to another foreign ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, who replied that the matter was not a diplomatic issue and suggested that the reporter contact the "relevant department". Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the CCP-owned tabloid Global Times tweeted, "As a person who is familiar with Chinese system, I don't believe Peng Shuai has received retaliation and repression speculated by foreign media for the thing people talked about". Commentators seized upon the vague, deflective wording in Hu's tweet, and noted that the Global Times has not covered the accusations against the former vice-premier at all.
On 14 November, WTA chief executive Steve Simon called on Chinese authorities to investigate Peng's allegations and stop censoring the subject. The state-affiliated Chinese Tennis Association responded with a statement that Peng was safe and not under any physical threat. Simon said that no one associated with the WTA, including officials and active players, had been able to reach her directly to confirm her status. ATP chairman Andrea Gaudenzi also expressed concern about the uncertainty surrounding Peng's immediate safety and whereabouts. He offered full support for WTA's investigation into Peng's allegations and said that the ATP would continue to monitor the situation closely. On 12 November, the hashtag #WhereIsPengShuai was first used, and went on to trend globally. On 15 November, tennis player Novak Djokovic expressed his shock at Peng's disappearance in comments to reporters after winning his ATP Finals opener. On 16 November, tennis player Naomi Osaka posted a message on Twitter demanding answers about Peng's whereabouts and her sexual allegation. Tennis players Serena Williams, Andy Murray, and Billie Jean King expressed their concerns as well about Peng's alleged disappearance. Djokovic said the incident was "shocking" and Osaka said "Censorship is never OK at any cost." On 21 November, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal voiced concern for Peng. On 15 November, Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated wrote that the "2008 Beijing Games that were supposed to liberalize China made its regime only more brazen in rejecting liberal democracy and human rights" and called for the cancellation of all tournaments in China until the whereabouts of Peng had been ascertained. He suggested that the Tour cut ties with China to make a statement before the Winter Olympics that "Our athletes' safety and our moral principles—our belief in women's rights, human rights and democracy—matter more than our balance sheets."
#WhereIsPengShuai hashtag
#WhereIsPengShuai (Where is Peng Shuai?) is a hashtag, used mainly in social media, and a grassroots campaign to raise awareness about the disappearance of Peng Shuai. The hashtag first appeared on Twitter on November 12, 2021. The next day, French professional tennis player Alizé Cornet tweeted, "Let's not remain silent #WhereIsPengShuai". The hashtag was then quickly picked up and used by the tennis community and others to call attention to the disappearance of Peng Shuai. Among those who did this in the following couple of days were Chris Evert, Nicolas Mahut, Petra Kvitova, Simona Halep, Naomi Osaka, Stan Wawrinka and Serena Williams.
Australian Open
During the 2022 Australian Open, on 22 January, fans wearing t-shirts with the slogan "Where is Peng Shuai?" were asked to remove their shirts. A police officer at the scene was recorded saying, "The Australian Open does have a rule that you can't have political slogans ... it's a rule that it's a condition of entry." Tennis Australia backed up the police response. Later, Martina Navratilova stated, "I find it really, really cowardly. I think they are wrong on this. This is not a political statement, this is a human rights statement."
After an international outcry, Tennis Australia chief Craig Tiley reversed the decision and said fans are free to wear the t-shirts. However, signs on poles or "mobs" would not be allowed.
In response to the t-shirt controversy, a Chinese spokesman said, "The politicisation of sports will not succeed and will not gain support from the majority of people, including sportsmen and women, in the international community."
Multilingual use of the hashtag The hashtag appeared as #OùEstPengShuai in French media and #DondeEstaPengShuai in Spanish media.
China's response to the hashtag The name Peng Shuai was censored in China within 30 minutes of a social media post authored by Peng Shuai accusing former vice premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault. It is therefore assumed the hashtag, #WhereIsPengShuai remains unknown to Chinese citizens.
Emails, photos, and videos On 17 November, Chinese state media outlet China Global Television Network released an email allegedly written by Peng to Simon, in which she said she was resting at home and that her allegation of sexual assault was not true. The email also criticized the WTA for releasing what she called unverified information about Peng without her consent. Many noted that a typing cursor appears to be visible on the screenshot of the email and doubted the authenticity of the email. Responding in regard to the email, Simon stated that it only raised his concerns as to her safety and whereabouts. He reiterated that Peng's sexual assault allegation must be investigated "with full transparency and without censorship". He also threatened to withdraw WTA tournaments in China until sexual assault allegations made by Peng are properly addressed. Mareike Ohlberg of the German Marshall Fund felt that the purported email was "not meant to convince people but to intimidate". The International Tennis Federation later said in a statement that it was committed to player safety and supports an investigation into the whereabouts of Peng. Meanwhile, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said in a statement that they had "seen the latest reports and are encouraged by assurances that she is safe". In contrast to the IOC's quiet diplomacy, Tony Estanguet, the president of the 2024 Summer Olympics, has called for the "greatest transparency" regarding the health and safety of Peng. Amnesty International called on China to prove that Peng is safe and to investigate the sexual assault allegations against Zhang. On 19 November, the spokesperson of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Liz Throssell called on China to provide proof of her whereabouts and wellbeing, and urged for an investigation with full transparency into her sexual assault allegations.
On the same day, Chinese state media reporter Shen Shiwei shared screenshots of a WeChat thread of what he alleged to be Peng's chats with her friend, which consisted of three photos of Peng posing with her cat and stuffed animals including Winnie-the-Pooh. The cartoon character was blocked by online censors after it was used as a meme for Xi Jinping, but Pooh Bear merchandise can still be purchased in China.