III 

Calendar No. 323 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 503 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Government of the People’s 

Republic of China should immediately guarantee the safety and freedom 

of tennis star Peng Shuai. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 3, 2022 

Mr. SCOTT of Florida (for himself, Mr. WARNER, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. BROWN, 

Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. 

VAN HOLLEN, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. CASEY, Mr. COTTON, Mr. 

WARNOCK, Mr. JOHNSON, and Mrs. SHAHEEN) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

APRIL 4 (legislative day, MARCH 31), 2022 

Reported by Mr. MENENDEZ, with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble 

[Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic] 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Government 

of the People’s Republic of China should immediately 

guarantee the safety and freedom of tennis star Peng 

Shuai. 

Whereas, on November 2, 2021, 3-time Olympian Peng Shuai 

went missing after she said in a since-deleted post on 

Chinese social media site Weibo that she had been sexuVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:22 Apr 05, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR503.RS SR503

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ally assaulted and forced into a sexual relationship with 

Zhang Gaoli, who was the senior Vice Premier of the 

State Council of the People’s Republic of China from 

2013 to 2018; 

Whereas authorities of the People’s Republic of China imposed a media and internet blackout of discussions of 

Peng’s case; 

Whereas, on November 14, 2021, after Peng had not been 

seen or heard from for 12 days, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s Tennis Association Steve 

Simon requested a ‘‘full, fair, and transparent’’ investigation into Peng’s allegations; 

Whereas the hashtag ‘‘#WhereIsPengShuai’’ trended across 

social media worldwide, with the exception of the People’s 

Republic of China where it was censored; 

Whereas, on November 17, 2021, the Women’s Tennis Association received a statement purporting to be from Peng, 

recanting her abuse claim and saying ‘‘everything is 

fine’’; 

Whereas, in response, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer 

of the Women’s Tennis Association Steve Simon said the 

statement ‘‘released today by Chinese state media concerning Peng Shuai only raises my concerns as to her 

safety and whereabouts’’; 

Whereas the International Olympic Committee said in a 

statement that it was ‘‘encouraged by assurances that 

she is safe’’; 

Whereas, on November 19 and 20, 2021, photos and videos 

of Peng appearing in her home, in a restaurant, and at 

a youth tennis event in Beijing emerged on Twitter accounts affiliated with government-run media; 


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Whereas, on November 19, 2021, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the White House is ‘‘deeply concerned’’ over Peng’s disappearance and seeks ‘‘independent and verifiable proof’’ of her location and condition; 

Whereas, on November 19, 2021, Liz Throssell, the spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for 

Human Rights, told reporters ‘‘. . . it would be important to have proof of her whereabouts and wellbeing, and 

we would urge that there be an investigation with full 

transparency into her allegations of sexual assault’’; 

Whereas, on November 21, 2021, the International Olympic 

Committee said in a statement that its President, Thomas Bach, had a 30-minute video call with Peng, joined by 

a Chinese sports official and an official of the International Olympic Committee; 

Whereas the statement said that, during the call, Peng appeared to be ‘‘doing fine’’ and appeared ‘‘relaxed’’, and 

said she ‘‘would like to have her privacy respected’’; 

Whereas the International Olympic Committee did not explain how the video call with Peng had been organized, 

given the difficulties other concerned parties have had 

reaching her; 

Whereas, on November 30, 2021, in an interview with CNN, 

International Olympic Committee official Dick Pound defended the handling of the situation by the Government 

of the People’s Republic of China and said the ‘‘unanimous conclusion’’ by International Olympic Committee 

officials on the call is that Peng Shuai is ‘‘fine’’; 

Whereas the annual report of the Congressional-Executive 

Commission on China for 2020 finds that gender-based 


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violence in China remains a serious issue, and highly 

publicized cases of sexual assault continue to surface; 

Whereas, on December 1, 2021, the Women’s Tennis Association suspended all Women’s Tennis Association tournaments in China and Hong Kong; 

Whereas Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s Tennis Association Steve Simon stated, ‘‘In good 

conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her allegation of sexual assault. Given the current 

state of affairs, I am also greatly concerned about the 

risks that all of our players and staff could face if we 

were to hold events in China in 2022.’’; 

Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China 

has repeatedly detained ‘‘#MeToo’’ activists in China 

and censored online and public discussion around sexual 

assault and harassment; and 

Whereas athletes from the around the world will be competing in the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing in 

February 2022: Now, therefore, be it 

Whereas, on November 2, 2021, 3-time Olympian Peng Shuai 

went missing after she said in a since-deleted post on Chinese social media site Weibo that she had been sexually assaulted and forced into a sexual relationship with Zhang 

Gaoli, who was the senior Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China from 2013 to 2018; 

Whereas authorities of the People’s Republic of China imposed 

a media and internet blackout of discussions of Peng’s 

case; 


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Whereas, on November 14, 2021, after Peng had not been seen 

or heard from for 12 days, Chairman and Chief Executive 

Officer of the Women’s Tennis Association Steve Simon requested a ‘‘full, fair, and transparent’’ investigation into 

Peng’s allegations; 

Whereas the hashtag ‘‘#WhereIsPengShuai’’ trended across social media worldwide, with the exception of the People’s 

Republic of China where it was censored; 

Whereas, on November 17, 2021, the Women’s Tennis Association received a statement purporting to be from Peng, recanting her abuse claim and saying ‘‘everything is fine’’; 

Whereas, in response, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of 

the Women’s Tennis Association Steve Simon said the 

statement ‘‘released today by Chinese state media concerning Peng Shuai only raises my concerns as to her safety and whereabouts’’; 

Whereas the International Olympic Committee said in a statement that it was ‘‘encouraged by assurances that she is 

safe’’; 

Whereas, on November 19 and 20, 2021, photos and videos of 

Peng appearing in her home, in a restaurant, and at a 

youth tennis event in Beijing emerged on Twitter accounts 

affiliated with government-run media; 

Whereas, on November 19, 2021, White House Press Secretary 

Jen Psaki said the White House is ‘‘deeply concerned’’ over 

Peng’s disappearance and seeks ‘‘independent and 

verifiable proof’’ of her location and condition; 

Whereas, on November 19, 2021, Liz Throssell, the spokesperson 

for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human 

Rights, told reporters ‘‘. . . it would be important to have 

proof of her whereabouts and wellbeing, and we would urge 


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that there be an investigation with full transparency into 

her allegations of sexual assault’’; 

Whereas, on November 21, 2021, the International Olympic 

Committee said in a statement that its President, Thomas 

Bach, had a 30-minute video call with Peng, joined by a 

Chinese sports official and an official of the International 

Olympic Committee; 

Whereas the statement said that, during the call, Peng appeared to be ‘‘doing fine’’ and appeared ‘‘relaxed’’, and 

said she ‘‘would like to have her privacy respected’’; 

Whereas the International Olympic Committee did not explain 

how the video call with Peng had been organized, given the 

difficulties other concerned parties have had reaching her; 

Whereas, on November 30, 2021, in an interview with CNN, 

International Olympic Committee official Dick Pound defended the handling of the situation by the Government of 

the People’s Republic of China and said the ‘‘unanimous 

conclusion’’ by International Olympic Committee officials 

on the call is that Peng Shuai is ‘‘fine’’; 

Whereas the annual report of the Congressional-Executive 

Commission on China for 2020 finds that gender-based violence in China remains a serious issue, and highly publicized cases of sexual assault continue to surface; 

Whereas, on December 1, 2021, the Women’s Tennis Association suspended all Women’s Tennis Association tournaments in China and Hong Kong; 

Whereas Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Women’s 

Tennis Association Steve Simon stated, ‘‘In good conscience, I don’t see how I can ask our athletes to compete 

there when Peng Shuai is not allowed to communicate 

freely and has seemingly been pressured to contradict her 


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allegation of sexual assault. Given the current state of affairs, I am also greatly concerned about the risks that all 

of our players and staff could face if we were to hold events 

in China in 2022.’’; and 

Whereas the Government of the People’s Republic of China has 

repeatedly detained ‘‘#MeToo’’ activists in China and 

censored online and public discussion around sexual assault and harassment: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that— 

2 (1) the case of Peng Shuai is directly related to 

3 broader international concerns around the freedom 

4 of speech and safety of athletes participating in the 

5 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing; 

6 (2) the failure of the International Olympic 

7 Committee to clearly and forcefully challenge the 

8 claims of the Government of the People’s Republic 

9 of China concerning Peng’s safety raise questions 

10 about the ability and willingness of the International 

11 Olympic Committee to stand up for the human 

12 rights of athletes participating in the 2022 Olympic 

13 and Paralympic games in Beijing; 

14 (3) the Government of the People’s Republic of 

15 China would help reduce concerns about athlete 

16 safety at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing 

17 by assuring Peng’s freedom and safety and inves18 tigating her allegations in a fair and transparent 

19 manner; 


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1 (4) the Government of the People’s Republic of 

2 China should immediately take steps to— 

3 (A) provide independent and verifiable 

4 proof of Peng’s whereabouts and that she is 

5 safe; 

6 (B) allow Peng to engage directly with the 

7 Women’s Tennis Association and the United 

8 Nations to independently verify her safety and 

9 explain her absence from public life since mak10 ing her allegation; 

11 (C) open an independent and transparent 

12 investigation into Peng’s allegations against 

13 former senior Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli; 

14 (D) publicly commit to hold sexual violence 

15 abusers accountable; 

16 (E) cease all censorship of reporting and 

17 discussions of Peng’s case; and 

18 (F) allow Peng to leave China if she so de19 sires and prevent any retaliation against family 

20 members remaining there; 

21 (5) by failing to clearly and forcefully challenge 

22 the Chinese Communist Party’s narrative, the Inter23 national Olympic Committee has failed to uphold its 

24 own stated commitments with regard to ‘‘[r]espect 

25 for international conventions on protecting human 


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1 rights’’, as outlined in the Code of Ethics of the 

2 International Olympic Committee; 

3 (6) the conduct of the International Olympic 

4 Committee runs counter to efforts by the United 

5 States Government, human rights organizations, the 

6 Women’s Tennis Association, and other international 

7 bodies and individuals to secure Peng’s safety; and 

8 (7) in an effort to regain lost public confidence, 

9 the International Olympic Committee should publicly 

10 call on the Government of the People’s Republic of 

11 China to undertake the actions called for in para12 graph (4). 

13 That it is the sense of the Senate that— 

14 (1) the case of Peng Shuai is directly related to 

15 broader international concerns around the freedom of 

16 speech and safety in China; 

17 (2) the failure of the International Olympic 

18 Committee to clearly and forcefully challenge the 

19 claims of the Government of the People’s Republic of 

20 China concerning Peng’s safety raises questions about 

21 the ability and willingness of the International Olym22 pic Committee to stand up for the human rights of 

23 athletes participating in the Olympic and 

24 Paralympic games in Beijing, as well as in future 

25 games; 


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1 (3) the Government of the People’s Republic of 

2 China should immediately take steps to— 

3 (A) allow Peng to provide independent and 

4 verifiable proof of her own whereabouts and safe5 ty without retribution; 

6 (B) allow Peng to engage directly with the 

7 Women’s Tennis Association and the United Na8 tions to independently verify her safety and ex9 plain her absences from public life since making 

10 her allegation; 

11 (C) open an independent and transparent 

12 investigation into Peng’s allegations against 

13 former senior Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli; 

14 (D) publicly commit to hold sexual violence 

15 abusers accountable; 

16 (E) cease all censorship of reporting and 

17 discussions of Peng’s case; and 

18 (F) allow Peng to leave China if she so de19 sires and prevent any retaliation against family 

20 members remaining there; 

21 (4) the International Olympic Committee, by 

22 failing to clearly and forcefully challenge the Chinese 

23 Communist Party’s narrative, has failed to uphold its 

24 own stated commitments with regard to ‘‘[r]espect for 

25 international conventions on protecting human 


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1 rights’’, as outlined in the Code of Ethics of the Inter2 national Olympic Committee, and runs counter to ef3 forts by the United States Government, human rights 

4 organizations, the Women’s Tennis Association, and 

5 other international bodies and individuals to secure 

6 Peng’s safety; 

7 (5) to regain lost public confidence, the Inter8 national Olympic Committee should publicly call on 

9 the Government of the People’s Republic of China to 

10 undertake the actions called for in paragraph (3); 

11 and 

12 (6) to demonstrate commitment to Olympic ath13 letes and their human rights, the International Olym14 pic Committee should deny the ability of the People’s 

15 Republic of China to serve as an Olympic Games host 

16 nation or to bid to become a future Olympic Games 

17 host nation until the Government of the People’s Re18 public of China ceases its horrific abuses of inter19 nationally recognized human rights, including the 

20 genocide against the Uyghurs and other Muslim mi21 norities, and undertakes the actions called for in 

22 paragraph (3). 


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Calendar No. 323 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 503 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Govtennis star Peng Shuai. immediately guarantee the safety and freedom of ernment of the People’s Republic of China should 

APRIL 4 (legislative day, MARCH 31), 2022 

Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the 

preamble 


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