Published 10:39 IST, December 19th 2019
Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 drop Mesut Özil from Chinese version of the game
A statement by the publishers cited the midfielder's remarks on the situation of Uighurs Muslims and termed that his remarks were against the spirit of the game
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In the latest turn of events in the Mesut Özil-China controversy, the footballer has been removed from the Chinese version of the Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 video game. The development took place on Wednesday afternoon when the publishers of the game in China, NetEase released a statement criticising the player.
Dropped from PES
The statement was released by NetEase on Weibo, and it read, "The speech hurt the feelings of Chinese fans and violated the sports spirit of love and peace. We do not understand, accept or forgive this. From now on, the national service version of "Football", "Live: Kings Assembly" and "Live Club" will no longer produce any "Mesut Özil" player roles and cards."
The former German international has been involved in a political storm after a social media post where he condemned the atrocities committed by the Chinese government on Uighurs in Xinjiang and how Muslim countries have not done enough to speak up.
#HayırlıCumalarDoğuTürkistan 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/dJgeK4KSIk
— Mesut Özil (@MesutOzil1088) December 13, 2019
United States Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo tweeted in support of the Arsenal midfielder, saying that China's Communist Party (CCP) cannot prevent the truth from prevailing in spite of its efforts to censor and condemn Mesut Özil and halt the broadcast of Arsenal matches.
Soon after Özil's social post, Arsenal published a statement on Weibo saying that the statement made by the footballer is his personal choice and that the club does not share the view. The North London club further added that the club follows a policy of not commenting on politics. The statement by Arsenal had little effect and damage had already by done. China's State-run channel, China Central Television (CCTV) decided to not broadcast the high profile match against Manchester City on Sunday evening.
In a press conference, the Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang said that Özil was a victim of fake news and that he was welcome to visit the region and see for himself. He said, "I want to tell Mr. Özil that Xinjiang enjoys political stability, economic growth, ethnic solidarity and social harmony, and residents there are leading a happy life."
(With inputs from agencies)
06:51 IST, December 19th 2019