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Mark Fainaru-Wada, ESPN Staff Writer
In a letter to two senators who accused the NBA of “putting profit over principle” for partnering with Rwandan dictator Paul Kagame, deputy commissioner Mark Tatum described how the league has championed several social impact initiatives in the country.
Tatum also defended the NBA, as he did in an ESPN story that prompted Congressional interest, by noting the league follows “the lead of the U.S. government as to where it’s appropriate to engage in business around the world.”
“If American policies were to change regarding business activities in and relating to Rwanda or any other BAL market, our actions would of course change accordingly,” Tatum said in the letter.
The NBA’s Basketball Africa League is closely aligned with Kagame and the Rwandan government, which has been accused of widespread human rights violations far worse than those the NBA opposes at home.
In the letter, Tatum wrote that the NBA is focused on “raising awareness of gender-based violence,” supporting girls’ education and encouraging participation in basketball at all levels. He also said that through the league’s presence in Africa, it’s helping to generate more employment and economic opportunities.
Tatum was responding to a bipartisan letter sent by Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) to NBA commissioner Adam Silver. The letter described how the NBA “has long positioned itself as a beacon of social justice” but instead has continued “developing relationships with dictators and despots,” such as Kagame.
“Every market poses different challenges, and we are always mindful of those differences in the more than 200 countries and territories where we operate,” Tatum wrote in his response to Blackburn and Merkley.