Enes Kanter, an NBA player, attacked Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday, calling him a “brutal dictator” and declaring that “Tibet belongs to the Tibetan people”, potentially reigniting tensions between Beijing and the US basketball league. Tibet has swung between independence and Chinese domination throughout the centuries. In fact, China claims to have “peacefully liberated” Tibet in 1951, bringing a boom in infrastructure and education to the previously underdeveloped region.
“Dear Brutal Dictator XI JINPING and the Chinese Government. Tibet belongs to the Tibetan people!” Boston Celtics center Kanter said in a message posted on social media.
“I stand with my Tibetan brothers and sisters, and I support their calls for Freedom,” he added, along with a photograph of sneakers with Tibetan iconography and the slogan “Free Tibet” on them.
A three-minute video showing Kanter donning a Dalai Lama T-shirt and condemning Chinese rule in the region accompanied the message.
The political sneakers worn by Kanter in the video were the ones he wore on the sidelines of the Celtics’ 138-134 double-overtime defeat to the New York Knicks on Wednesday night, a game he did not play.
In recent years, global brands such as the NBA have been engulfed in public relations issues and have faced financial ramifications in China after touching on politically sensitive topics.
After Daryl Morey, then-general manager of the Houston Rockets, tweeted a message of support for pro-democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong, Chinese broadcasters dropped the league in 2019.
Nevertheless, the NBA continues to be massively popular in China.
The Chinese foreign ministry spokesman responded to Kanter’s comment, “His ridiculous allegation is not even worth refuting.”
“We welcome all friends from all countries to visit Tibet without prejudice and with an objective stance,” Wang Wenbin said during a regular press conference.
Kanter is a Swiss-born and Turkey-raised Muslim who has time and again been vocal about various political causes.
Kanter joined the Celtics back again in August, having played for them a couple of years earlier.
