Turkish NBA Player Calls Out CCP, ‘Dictator’ Xi For Repression in Tibet

Turkish NBA subordinate Enes Kanter, an outspoken professional of the authorities successful Turkey, has called retired the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chinese person Xi Jinping connected the regime’s repression successful Tibet.

“I’m present to adhd my dependable and talk astir what is happening successful Tibet nether the Chinese government’s brutal rule. Tibetan people’s basal rights are nonexistent,” Boston Celtics center Kanter said successful a astir three-minute video clip posted to his idiosyncratic societal media accounts connected Wednesday.

Dear Brutal Dictator XI JINPING and the Chinese Government

Tibet belongs to the Tibetan people!#FreeTibet pic.twitter.com/To4qWMXK56

— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) October 20, 2021

Kanter, 29, who has been banned from traveling to Turkey by the medication of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, denounced President Xi arsenic a “brutal dictator” successful his clip, criticizing the CCP’s attraction of the Tibetan people.

Wearing a achromatic t-shirt emblazoned with an representation of the Dalai Lama, Kanter told viewers helium could nary longer “stay silent” astir the CCP’s governmental repression of Tibet and its culture.

“Tibet belongs to the Tibetan people!” Kanter wrote successful a Twitter post.

The CCP forcibly took implicit governmental power of Tibet successful 1951 aft promising the region’s radical the close to workout autonomy. Over the years, however, the authorities has continued to intensify its power implicit the section population, forcing monks and nuns to resume secular beingness and promoting Mandarin Chinese implicit the Tibetan language.

In August, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang told Tibetans to judge the party’s leadership, claiming it to beryllium the lone mode for Tibet to prosper.

The Tibetan government-in-exile, formally known arsenic the Tibetan Central Administration, released a document titled “Tibet: 70 Years of Occupation and Oppression” connected Sept. 30.

“The CCP celebrated with overmuch fanfare the alleged 70 years of ‘liberation’ of Tibet, which successful information is 70 years of CCP’s concern and egregious atrocities China perpetrated successful Tibet,” the papers stated. “For the Tibetans, determination was thing to observe the occasion, which was a achy reminder of the years starring to the CCP’s gruesome penetration of Tibet.”

“Tibetan people’s basal rights and freedoms are nonexistent. They are not allowed to survey and larn their connection and civilization freely. They are not allowed to question freely. They are not allowed to entree accusation freely. The Tibetan radical are not adjacent allowed to worship freely,” Kanter said.

Chinese tech elephantine Tencent, arsenic of Thursday, greeting pulled each live-streaming for the upcoming Celtics games conscionable hours aft Kanter’s video was posted.

The Epoch Times has contacted the NBA and Tencent for comment.

My man！
Proud to beryllium your overgarment brushwood 🔥#FreeTibet #自由西藏 https://t.co/oODLS3LTWW

— 巴丢草 Badiucao💉💉 (@badiucao) October 20, 2021

His video besides prompted a question of some enactment and choler from societal media users. Chinese-Australian cartoonist and governmental exile Badiucao took to Twitter to thank Kanter for speaking retired against the Chinese regime’s quality rights abuses successful Tibet.

However, connected China’s government-monitored societal media platforms similar Weibo, determination were galore aggravated comments, with immoderate Chinese calling for him to beryllium fired, portion others issued decease threats. Similar comments were besides posted by users to Kanter’s Instagram and Twitter accounts.

Weibo, one of China’s largest societal media platforms, arsenic of Thursday greeting barred users from searching “Kanter” connected its platform.

Kanter’s nationalist disapproval of the Chinese authorities came a time aft helium met with members of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) and the Tibetan Community Center successful Queens, New York, during which helium heard from Tibetan quality rights defenders, including Nyima Lhamo, a caller escapee and niece of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche, a well-known Tibetan governmental captive who died portion successful Chinese custody successful 2015.

It besides comes amid concerns implicit NBA players’ endorsement deals with Chinese sportswear firms that are linked to forced labor successful the Xinjiang region.

Brian Leung, Executive Director of the Washington-based nonprofit Hong Kong Democracy Council praised Kanter for speaking retired against the CCP.

“Shout retired to @EnesKanter who speaks retired against China’s quality rights abuses and shows solidarity for Tibetan people. Celebrities from US amusement industries should not enactment soundless to delight China’s authorities and its user market,” helium wrote connected Twitter.

Tibetan-American Pema Doma, Campaigns Director astatine SFT, described Kanter’s connection of enactment for Tibetan state arsenic “unbelievably moving.”

“I anticipation Enes Kanter’s singular basal and connection of enactment for a escaped Tibet volition spark different athletes to find their courageousness and talk retired against China’s unspeakable grounds of repression, including the Uyghur genocide, crushing of ideology and rights successful Hong Kong and persecution of Chinese rights advocates,” Doma added successful a statement.

Eva Fu contributed to this report.