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Jonathan White

Several high-profile footballers followed NBA player Rudy Gobert in sharing posts highlighting the plight of Uygurs in China, although several have since deleted them.
Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly, who was born in France but plays internationally for Senegal, shared a post on social media calling for the freedom of millions of Uygur Muslims from camps in China.
The blue square, which was shared by the French actor Omar Sy on his social media platforms, was captioned with a message in French.
“Millions of Uygur Muslims are locked up and tortured in concentration camps in China. Not for what they do, but for who they are,” it read.

#HayırlıCumalarDoğuTürkistan pic.twitter.com/dJgeK4KSIk
— Mesut Özil (@MesutOzil1088) December 13, 2019

“It is the largest mass internment of the 21st century. It must be ended. #FreeUyghurs”.
NBA star Gobert, who plays for the Utah Jazz, was widely praised for being the first NBA player to speak out on the issue, which has become increasingly politicised.




















View this post on Instagram



















#freeuyghur #freeuyghurs #freeouïghours ️
A post shared by Franck Ribéry (@franckribery7) on Oct 1, 2020 at 4:38am PDT



Koulibaly has since deleted the post as have several other players including Barcelona’s Ousmane Dembele and Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez.
A number of French celebrities shared such posts with francophone hashtag “#FreeOuighours” and “#FRANCEFORUYGHURS”.
Former France international Franck Ribery, who now plays at Fiorentina in Italy, posted a blue square to Instagram with the hashtags “#freeuyghur”, “#freeuyghurs” and “#freeouïghours”.
NBA player Rudy Gobert shows support for Uygurs in Xinjiang
Porto’s France-born Mali international striker Moussa Marega also posted a blue square but with the longer message in French,
Senegal striker Demba Ba, who used to play in the Chinese Super League with Shanghai Shenhua, brought attention to the Uygur cause last month and called on his fellow players to criticise China’s treatment of Uygur Muslims in Xinjiang.
Ba, who plays in Turkey, told the BBC that he wanted to organise the effort to highlight alleged human rights abuses in the region.
Former CSL star Demba Ba calls on football to condemn Uygur treatment
“I have to try to organise something so football players can get together and, in the meantime, talk about this matter because not a lot of people want to,” he said.
“I know there are footballers who want to fight for justice, whether Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, any belief,” the practising Muslim told BBC Sport.
Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil is one of the few footballers to have spoken out about the reported human rights abuses carried out against Uygurs in Xinjiang. Last December the Germany international, who is of Turkish heritage, called on his fellow Muslims to speak out on the issue.
Cologne and Mesut Ozil count cost of China backlash
The posts generated an apology from the English Premier League club on their official Weibo account, while Ozil was invited to tour the region by the spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry.
Ozil has not removed the posts, which feature the flag of East Turkestan, seen as a separatist group by Beijing.
The player was then deleted from an online version of the Fifa video game in China and omitted from match commentary on state television. This latest round of posts has not been widely reported in China.




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Franck Ribery, Kalidou Koulibaly and French footballers follow NBA’s Rudy Gobert in support for Xinjiang’s Uygurs

Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Napoli's Kalidou Koulibaly in action during their 2018 Italian Serie A match. Photo: EPA

Former Chinese Super League striker Demba Ba calls on football to condemn Uygur treatment

Demba Ba in action for Shanghai Shenhua in the Chinese Super League. Photo: Twitter

Sonny Bill Williams follows Mesut Ozil in support for Uygurs on social media

New Zealand's Sonny Bill Williams (centre) and teammates perform the haka before the 2019 Rugby World Cup bronze match. Photo: Reuters

(FILES) This file picture taken on July 19, 2017 shows Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil vying for the ball during the International Champions Cup football match between Bayern Munich and Arsenal in Shanghai. - Mesut Ozil is "Little Wife", Paul Pogba is "Busty" and Jose Mourinho is called "Magic Bird" -- Chinese fans and media have conjured up creative and bizarre nicknames for many of the world's best-known football figures. (Photo by JOHANNES EISELE / AFP) / - China OUT

New Zealand's Sonny Bill Williams (C) tries to evade a tackle from South Africa's Kwagga Smith (L) and Eben Etzebeth during the Rugby Championship match between New Zealand and South Africa at Westpac Stadium in Wellington on July 27, 2019. (Photo by Marty MELVILLE / AFP)

(FILES) In this file photo taken on December 14, 2019 a supporter of China's Muslim Uighur minority holds a placard of Arsenal's Turkish origin German midfielder Mesut Ozil reading "Thanks for being our voice" during a demonstration at Beyazid square in Istanbul. - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on December 17, 2019 denounced China for its heavy-handed actions against Arsenal over footballer Mesut Ozil's support for incarcerated Uighurs, saying Beijing could not hide reality. Arsenal distanced itself from Ozil but Beijing dropped state television broadcasts of the English Premier League club's Sunday match -- a move that could have major commercial ramifications in the lucrative Chinese market. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP)

Cologne and Mesut Ozil count cost of China backlash

Arsenal’s Mesut Ozil reacts during the English Premier League match against Manchester City. The game was not shown in China. Photo: EPA

FILE - In this Nov. 18, 2017 file photo a Chinese spectator attempts to tear away a Tibetian flag which was raised by others in protest of China's politics regarding Tibet at the friendly match between TSV Schott Mainz and China's U20 team at the regional sports facility in Mainz, Germany. The German soccer federation is hoping China's under-20 team is more relaxed about any further protests it may face while playing friendly matches in the country after walking off mid-game last weekend. (Hasan Bratic/dpa via AP,file)

18 December 2019, Frankfurt/Main: Cologne's Sebastiaan Bornauw (2nd L) celebrates scoring his side's second goal with teammates during the German Bundesliga soccer match between Eintracht Frankfurt and 1. FC Cologne at the Commerzbank Arena. Photo: Thomas Frey/dpa - WICHTIGER HINWEIS: Gemäß den Vorgaben der DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga bzw. des DFB Deutscher Fußball-Bund ist es untersagt, in dem Stadion und/oder vom Spiel angefertigte Fotoaufnahmen in Form von Sequenzbildern und/oder videoähnlichen Fotostrecken zu verwerten bzw. verwerten zu lassen.

epaselect epa06067958 Chinese President Xi Jinping (2-L) and his wife Peng Liyuan (1-L), German Chancellor Angela Merkel (3-L), Reinhard Grindel (4-L), President of the German Football Association (DFB) seen a soccer game of U12 children between Germany and China during their visit in Olympic Park in Berlin, Germany, 05 July 2017. Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Chinese President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jinping, will be informing about the current status of cooperation in the field of football at the Olympic Park in Berlin. EPA/RONALD WITTEK / POOL

(FILES) This file photo taken on November 18, 2017 shows protesters holding the Tibetan flag ahead of the friendly football match TSV Schott Mainz vs China's Under-20 team in Mainz, Germany, on November 18, 2017. German football authorities have been told to find a compromise with the visiting China Under-20 team over the issue of pro-Tibet protests, or scrap their remaining friendlies. The Chinese junior team is touring southwest Germany as part of an initiative aimed at advancing China's chances at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. / AFP PHOTO / dpa / Hasan Bratic / Germany OUT

Arsenal's Spanish head coach Mikel Arteta (R) embraces Arsenal's German midfielder Mesut Ozil (L) on the pitch after the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium in London on January 1, 2020. - Arsenal won the game 2-0. (Photo by Ian KINGTON / IKIMAGES / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 45 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (3R) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (2R) greet the players before a soccer match between the U12 teams of Germany and China in Berlin, Germany, July 5, 2017. REUTERS/Michael Sohn/Pool

(FILES) This file photo taken on November 18, 2017 shows China's Under20 players warming up ahead the friendly football match TSV Schott Mainz vs China's Under-20 team in Mainz, southern Germany. German football authorities have been told to find a compromise with the visiting China Under-20 team over the issue of pro-Tibet protests, or scrap their remaining friendlies. The Chinese junior team is touring southwest Germany as part of an initiative aimed at advancing China's chances at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. / AFP PHOTO / dpa / Hasan Bratic / Germany OUT

NBA player Rudy Gobert shows support for Uygurs in Xinjiang

NBA player Rudy Gobert has spoken out about China’s treatment of Uygurs in Xinjiang. Photo: AFP

Sport

Football

China


Franck Ribery, Papa Koulibaly and Moussa Marega share image of blue screen and message of support for Uygurs in Xinjiang
Some players post and then delete their message, which was also shared by NBA player Rudy Gobert and other French stars



French-born Muslim footballers Franck Ribery, Papa Koulibaly and Moussa Marega among those to share image of blue screen and message of support for Uygurs in Xinjiang following NBA player Rudy Gobert.


Franck Ribery, Kalidou Koulibaly and French footballers follow NBA’s Rudy Gobert in support for Xinjiang’s Uygurs

Franck Ribery, Papa Koulibaly and Moussa Marega share image of blue screen and message of support for Uygurs in Xinjiang Some players post and then delete their message, which was also shared by NBA player Rudy Gobert and other French stars

Franck Ribery, Papa Koulibaly and Moussa Marega share image of blue screen and message of support for Uygurs in Xinjiang

Some players post and then delete their message, which was also shared by NBA player Rudy Gobert and other French stars