U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Oreg.) have jointly expressed serious concerns about the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) growing relationship with Rwandan President Paul Kagame, a leader with a documented history of human rights abuses.
In a letter addressed to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, the senators criticized the league’s ongoing engagements with Kagame and raised alarms about its dealings with officials from the Chinese Communist Party.
The senators highlighted the NBA’s significant business interests in Africa, valued at nearly $1 billion as of 2021, and the league’s role in supporting Kagame’s regime.
“It seems that the NBA—which has long positioned itself as a beacon of social justice—is choosing to continue developing relationships with dictators and despots, all in the name of putting profit over principle,” the letter states. The senators noted that the NBA’s ties with Kagame date back to 2018, when Commissioner Silver participated in public events with the Rwandan president in Kigali, including offering support for the construction of a $104 million arena to establish the Basketball Africa League (BAL).
The letter further condemned Kagame’s two-decade-long rule in Rwanda, marked by severe restrictions on freedom of expression, internet censorship, and the brutal suppression of opposition.
The senators also cited Kagame’s alleged military support for the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has been accused of committing atrocities, including recruiting child soldiers and using sexual violence as a weapon of war.
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The senators also extended their critique to the NBA’s activities in China, expressing concern over the league’s engagement with Chinese officials and its policies on products made with forced labor.
“Playing ball with dictators and brutal regimes should not be the NBA’s business model,” the letter emphasizes, urging the league to leverage its influence to advocate for governance reforms and respect for the rule of law in these regions.
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