China, Human Rights and the Olympics – A Call For Perspective and Discussion

The Olympics are an international event. It is entirely appropriate, in my opinion, to protest events of interest to the international community.

There are protests, and then there are protests.

Athletes have historically used Olympics as a stage of protest. The Olympics are about the athletes, and thus, I think it's rather fitting that they be encouraged to do so.

However, there are also protests like French president Sarkozy's, who publicly announced that he'd "boycott" the Olympics by not going there, as if his presence would matter to the Chinese, when in fact the Chinese didn't give a s--- as to whether he was there or not. In the end, he slunk back to watch the fireworks.

There are protests, and then there are protests.

Jack - So would I be right that the distinction you're making is between protests by athletes and protests by politicians?

Yes. The US choice of flag-bearer, a Sudanese refugee, was a political commentary and a subtle protest in and of itself. The Chinese weren't pissed at that. What does annoy people when a guy grandstands for attention, then decides that the show is too cool to miss, and pretends he never tried to insult the host nation in the first place.

Or is it people who matter versus those who don't so much, i.e. an athlete in the pentathalon might matter less than, say, Dick Cheney? BTW does anyone else half expect Cheney to show up at the pentathalon and shoot anyone ahead of the American

Among athletes, it's not a matter of those who matter and those who don't. Iraq matters little in terms of Olympic competition, but their team was greeted by thunderous applause in the Parade of Nations.

Of course a protest-free Olympics is possible: but only by suspending the peoples' right to freedom of speech and expression (that is, in nations that recognise such rights). Politics can never be suspended from the Olympics: it is - as I wrote above - an international event, and any such event is an opportunity for diplomatic intercourse. *ahem*

Of course a protest-free Olympics is possible: but only by suspending the peoples' right to freedom of speech and expression (that is, in nations that recognise such rights).

Hmmm, so you're guaranteeing that there will always be people motivated enough to protest at the Olympics?

What was protested at Barcelona?

Well we protested the first of many dumb mascots but I'm thinking you're guessing something more serious.

Heh, yes. I don't think too many Chinese people like the kitschy fuwa mascots, either.
And what was with the Blob People of Athens, anyway?

Tom Brokaw is on NBC right now discussing this very topic of boycotts but with the boycott threatened of the L.A. Olympics.

Eh, I have the swimming prelims on.

is there a freedom of speech when in a communist nation?

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

I wouldn't go to a country ruled by a tyrannical totalitarian regime and expect to enjoy rights we normally enjoy only in liberal republics/democracies.

The best way to express your dissatisfaction is with your wallet.

Many small dents will eventually make a large hole.

Yes. I've boycotted the Olympics. It hurts the people who sponsor the communist government in China by purchasing commercial time. It encourages the Olympic committee to choose other venues.

Yes, and certainly yes.

A couple of letters in today's Vancouver Sun regarding the fiasco of the Olympics in China.

Letter #1

I am truly amazed at the International Olympic Committee and how its members are willing to turn a blind eye to human rights abuses for the sake of an Olympics event. I'm appalled that they selected China to host the Summer Games now underway in the first place. I've been watching BBC news reports as well as Canadian about the turmoil and outright degradation suffered by the Chinese equivalents of "Joe Lunch Pail" for the sake of a sports event. The Chinese government has expropriated and bulldozed houses, displaced people and diverted water, to the detriment of farmers and the environment; and officials have censored reports about protests, dissent and anything contrary to the party line. The air in Beijing still appears to be filthy because of lack of concern about the environment, something you can't hide. Protesters are being arrested for expressing their outrage at the invasion of Tibet and other issues. The media, the IOC and the public dare not speak out. China is a tyrant. Now, at the 11th hour, it wants to redefine itself as just another sporting nation, the friendly "Disneyland of the East." Do we buy into it? Steve Hegedus Jr. Maple Ridge

Letter #2

As a Chinese-Canadian, I am appalled by the Communist Chinese government's censorship and its refusal to issue licences for television networks to transmit their Olympics coverage within China. Even when spotty transmission is allowed, it's only after huge sums of money have been paid for licences, clearly displaying the greed of the Chinese government. Also embarrassing is China's censorship of reporters by obliging them to apply 24 hours in advance to interview people in Tiananmen Square. Add to that the news that a Canadian athlete's visa has been revoked without explanation, plus a TV report about the cruel training regimens of kids in gymnastics in China, and a terrible picture emerges. This nation's leaders disregard common decency for their own people and for outsiders, which leaves one shuddering to think what happens to human rights in occupied territories like Tibet. These Olympics aren't worth watching because the Chinese authorities will make a farce out of sportsmanship. Instead the Games will be the totalitarian regime's display of self-congratulatory antics on a fabricated level never seen in my lifetime, a worse display of totalitarianism than the Nazis' 1936 Olympics in Berlin. But I value the independent reports coming out of China and will follow those, as it's a rare opportunity for the media to tell the world just how China's government conducts itself. Based on its performance so far, it should have been disqualified from holding the Olympics. Allison Chan Beaulieu Vancouver

link

I've been watching BBC news reports as well as Canadian about the turmoil and outright degradation suffered by the Chinese equivalents of "Joe Lunch Pail" for the sake of a sports event. The Chinese government has expropriated and bulldozed houses, displaced people and diverted water, to the detriment of farmers and the environment

Indeed, the Chinese themselves have expressed disapproval of the government's "beautification" of Beijing for the Olympics, razing tenement areas, etc.

The air in Beijing still appears to be filthy because of lack of concern about the environment, something you can't hide.

Sigh. People on the ground, including athletes, (Westerners, which are the only people you can trust, of course) have stated multiple times that much of the apparent pollution in Beijing was due to fog from high humidity, not smog (unlike in Los Angeles). But hey, who cares about facts if we have other people's ignorant judgments to support us, right? ;-)

The media, the IOC and the public dare not speak out.

What laughable crock. Did people really forget the torch relay so soon? The physical assaults on torchbearers? Perhaps "the public" didn't speak out so much as lash out with fisticuffs.

These Olympics aren't worth watching because the Chinese authorities will make a farce out of sportsmanship.

Curiously, NBC has repeatedly expressed surprise as to how good the sportsmanship the Chinese displayed has been, and I doubt that they had such low expectations.

As for comparisons to the 1936 Olympics, well, let's just say those ring rather hollow:

In the run-up to the Games, China's critics have repeatedly compared Beijing in 2008 to Berlin in 1936. And who wants to be pro-Nazi? Pundits were pleased to note, as the torch relay toward Beijing was being disrupted by protests this spring, that the running of the flame was a ritual invented for Hitler's Games. But so is monumental Olympic urban renewal and the whole vocabulary of heroic Olympic cinematography. Implying that the Beijing Games are uniquely similar to Berlin means willfully ignoring decades of history.

True. Their dollars flow directly into the coffers of the communist government. They're effectively financing the communist government and all of its oppressive/tyrannical policies by doing so.

I feel very strongly about the issue of not supporting oppressive totalitarian governments. I try not to purchase any goods made in China, period (and my home is remarkably free of cheap, inferior made-in-China cr*p as a result).

True. Their dollars flow directly into the coffers of the communist government. They're effectively financing the communist government and all of its oppressive/tyrannical policies by doing so.

It truly is sad when a kid forms a view of an entire nation based on little more than fourth-hand neo-McCarthyist fervor. In many ways, the US gov't is more socialist than the Chinese. If you want an example of what capitalism can do, look no further than China (and not the China of twenty years ago that you're referring to).

I feel very strongly about the issue of not supporting oppressive totalitarian governments.

So do you support the US gov't, with its takeover of Iraq, secret prisons, and extralegal wiretapping?

It truly is sad when a kid forms a view of an entire nation based on little more than fourth-hand neo-McCarthyist fervor.

Flamebait. If you can't have a conversation without being civil, don't bother responding to my comments in the future. I'm very certain I don't conform to your obviously preconceived notions of who I am or what I know (or don't know) about China. At this moment I'm not kindly disposed to educating you otherwise as I am not at all impressed with your attitude.

If you can't have a conversation without being civil, don't bother responding to my comments in the future.

Ha, from the person who called me a mouthpiece of Chinese propaganda on my own article?

What pathetic hypocrisy.

I'm very certain I don't conform to your obviously preconceived notions of who I am or what I know (or don't know) about China.

But I obviously conform to yours, right? ;-)

At this moment I'm not kindly disposed to educating you otherwise as I am not at all impressed with your attitude.

You educating me? About as likely as a horse teaching someone quantum mechanics, but hey, whatever excuse you want to make yourself feel better.

Once again as it was apparently missed the first time: if you can't have a conversation without being civil, don't bother responding to my comments in the future.

Meh. Next time you try to lecture from up on high, keep in mind that such moral platitudes are more effective if you practice what you preach.

My comments are my own personal opinions to which you are perfectly entitled to disagree with - in an honest, intelligent, and informed manner.

This you did not do unfortunately, instead choosing to engage in ad hominem, which you seem to engage in routinely (considering my recent experiences with you on other threads).

Tellingly, you did not even address my comments, instead changing the topic entirely, which again seems to be a habit of yours.

If you are unable to respond in a civil fashion you will be the second person on my ignore list, along with the charming poster FaggotsAreGay.

Tellingly, you did not even address my comments, instead changing the topic entirely, which again seems to be a habit of yours.

And tellingly, you simply choose to lie.

After all, I find it hard to believe that you truly failed to visually comprehend In many ways, the US gov't is more socialist than the Chinese. If you want an example of what capitalism can do, look no further than China (and not the China of twenty years ago that you're referring to)...

So do you support the US gov't, with its takeover of Iraq, secret prisons, and extralegal wiretapping? You're the one who simply fell back on "Ewww, stop picking on me!", ignoring the majority of my comment.

If you are unable to respond in a civil fashion you will be the second person on my ignore list, along with the charming poster FaggotsAreGay.

Sorry, but I won't simply defer to your sweeping demonizations about a nation you obviously know very little about. Read more, or perhaps, read more widely.

Congratulations. You went out of your way to make it on my ignore list.

There are only so many personal attacks I'm willing to put up with before I call it quits with any one individual - this poster's noxious behaviour is not confined only to this thread, but a few others. I have a low tolerance for incivility, and after a couple of polite requests for rational and civil conversations were (rudely) spurned, I decided it wasn't worth my while to try any longer.

That's all I have to say regarding this matter.

Thanks for your concern, though.

I don't think it's "OK" for the Chinese gov't to do this, though (I think I already said this on a different seed of yours) I really doubt this was part of the officially sanctioned anti-protest initiative. My guess is that it's probably due to overzealousness on the part of some small-time Chinese official trying to get a leg up.