The Human Rights Foundation has issued a scathing attack on Lionel Messi in the wake of his recent visit to Gabon, accusing the Barcelona icon of “partying with oppressors.”
Messi was in the country last month to apparently fulfil a promise he made to president Ali Bongo, laying the first brick of a new stadium in Port-Gentil. But the player standing alongside the figurehead of this controversial regime has drawn plenty of criticism, most recently from HRF President Thor Halvorssen, per Marca:
“In providing PR services to Gabon’s Bongo family, Lionel Messi has seriously undermined the credibility of his own charitable foundation.
Whereas Messi claims to support children’s rights, and even serves as a UNICEF ambassador to promote youth education, he has endorsed a kleptocratic regime that refuses to investigate the ritual murder of children in Gabon.”
