UN seeks whereabouts, well-being of missing Chinese tennis star

The UN on Friday underlined the need for proof on the whereabouts of a missing Chinese tennis star who has been missing since recently alleging that she suffered sexual assault from a powerful ex-official.

"It would be important to have proof of her whereabouts and well-being," spokeswoman Liz Throssell of the UN Human Rights Office said on the missing athlete Peng Shuai at a briefing in Geneva.

"We are calling for an investigation with full transparency into her allegation of sexual assault," added Throssell.

Chinese state broadcaster CGTN published an e-mail on Wednesday purported to have been penned by Peng, saying she was "fine" and "resting at home." The letter also said that the previous allegation of sexual assault was "not true."

However, Steve Simon, President, and CEO of the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) responded in a statement saying that the letter "raises my concerns about her whereabouts or whether she has been kept safe."

Peng, who won the 2013 Wimbledon and 2014 French Open titles in doubles, rose to 14th place in the singles classification and reached the semi-finals of the 2014 US Open.

Her social media post on Nov. 2 accusing former Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli of sexual assault three years ago was quickly deleted and the Chinese tennis star, who has won more than 20 doubles and two singles events, has since disappeared from public view.

Zhang, 75, served as one of the seven members of the most powerful body of the Chinese Communist Party. He retired in 2018.

Fellow Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka spoke out on Twitter on Tuesday: "Censorship is never OK at any cost; I hope Peng Shuai and her family are safe and OK. I'm in shock of the current situation, and I'm sending love and light her way."

Top men's player Novak Djokovic also expressed "shock" over Peng's absence from public view.