First modification:
An alliance of 243 human rights organizations, led by Human Rights Watch, is calling for an international diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing a week before the Games begin. The denouncers demand a forceful pronouncement for the abuses of the authorities, especially against the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities. China accepted a UN visit, but after the event ends.
“The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will open amid atrocities and other serious human rights violations by the Chinese government,” say 243 organizations calling for a boycott of the iconic sporting event.
Human Rights Watch, Frontline Defenders and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers are among the movements urging the world’s politicians to express their protest a week before the Games start.
“It is not possible for the Olympics to be a ‘force for good,’ as the International Olympic Committee claims, while the host government is committing serious crimes in violation of international law,” said Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch. .
Through a statement issued on January 28, the NGOs assure that they documented numerous cases of abuses such as the detention, torture and forced labor of Uyghurs, attacks on press freedom and the alleged use of technology for surveillance, which violates the citizen privacy.
Zumretay Arkin, of the World Uyghur Congress, asserted that his people are suffering “the largest campaign of mass arrests since the Holocaust,” with forced sterilizations, induced abortions, cultural destruction, family separations, and all of this “contributed to by foreign companies that source from Xinjiang,” he stressed.
For the whistleblowers, a boycott of the Olympics would be a significant blow to the Chinese government that would affect its international image. Brian Leung, executive director of the Democratic Council of Hong Kong (in exile), pointed out that if athletes and governments raise their voices against it, there would be a starting point for not normalizing what is happening in the Asian nation.
China “is more hostile than ever to human rights discourse” and is succeeding in “normalizing self-censorship,” Leung stressed.
On December 6, Washington announced a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics for the “atrocities” of DD. H H. in China and as a domino effect its position was followed by Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada.
However, France and Germany were against the veto. “We must be careful with the link between sport and politics (…) Sport is a separate world that must be protected from political interference. Otherwise, things can get out of control and end up killing all competitions, he indicated then the French Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer.
China accepts UN visit after Games
Amid the international resonance, the local press reported that the Xi Jinping government agreed to a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, to the province of Xinjiang, where the large-scale abuses are being committed. .
It is a step that the United Nations has tried to negotiate for years and so far to no avail.
The newspaper ‘South China Morning Post’, citing unidentified sources, reported that Bachelet’s presence there would be conditioned. The United Nations representative could only go to the region when the Olympic Games are over, starting on February 20, and on the condition that it be a “friendly” visit, not framed as an investigation.
However, the High Commissioner’s spokesman, Rupert Colville, responded that Michelle Bachelet is in talks with the Chinese government for a possible visit in the first half of 2022, but that it must be “significant, with unsupervised access” to the region. from Xinjiang.
Beijing has come under long-standing criticism for allegations of human rights abuses against ethnic minorities, as well as a crackdown on free speech.
Beijing’s policies towards Hong Kong have added to the widespread rejection in recent years. And more recently, the case of Olympic tennis player Peng Shuai, who accused former Vice Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexual harassment.
Initially, the unknown whereabouts of the athlete after making the public statements, and later her appearances in which she changed her version and claimed to be fine, have not diminished the concerns of the sports community about her condition.
Beijing denies all allegations of abuse against Uyghurs and other Turkish Muslims and has described its policies as “necessary” to combat religious extremism.
With Reuters, AP and EFE
First modification:
An alliance of 243 human rights organizations, led by Human Rights Watch, is calling for an international diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing a week before the Games begin. The denouncers demand a forceful pronouncement for the abuses of the authorities, especially against the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities. China accepted a UN visit, but after the event ends.
“The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will open amid atrocities and other serious human rights violations by the Chinese government,” say 243 organizations calling for a boycott of the iconic sporting event.
Human Rights Watch, Frontline Defenders and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers are among the movements urging the world’s politicians to express their protest a week before the Games start.
“It is not possible for the Olympics to be a ‘force for good,’ as the International Olympic Committee claims, while the host government is committing serious crimes in violation of international law,” said Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch. .
Through a statement issued on January 28, the NGOs assure that they documented numerous cases of abuses such as the detention, torture and forced labor of Uyghurs, attacks on press freedom and the alleged use of technology for surveillance, which violates the citizen privacy.
Zumretay Arkin, of the World Uyghur Congress, asserted that his people are suffering “the largest campaign of mass arrests since the Holocaust,” with forced sterilizations, induced abortions, cultural destruction, family separations, and all of this “contributed to by foreign companies that source from Xinjiang,” he stressed.
For the whistleblowers, a boycott of the Olympics would be a significant blow to the Chinese government that would affect its international image. Brian Leung, executive director of the Democratic Council of Hong Kong (in exile), pointed out that if athletes and governments raise their voices against it, there would be a starting point for not normalizing what is happening in the Asian nation.
China “is more hostile than ever to human rights discourse” and is succeeding in “normalizing self-censorship,” Leung stressed.
On December 6, Washington announced a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics for the “atrocities” of DD. H H. in China and as a domino effect its position was followed by Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada.
However, France and Germany were against the veto. “We must be careful with the link between sport and politics (…) Sport is a separate world that must be protected from political interference. Otherwise, things can get out of control and end up killing all competitions, he indicated then the French Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer.
China accepts UN visit after Games
Amid the international resonance, the local press reported that the Xi Jinping government agreed to a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, to the province of Xinjiang, where the large-scale abuses are being committed. .
It is a step that the United Nations has tried to negotiate for years and so far to no avail.
The newspaper ‘South China Morning Post’, citing unidentified sources, reported that Bachelet’s presence there would be conditioned. The United Nations representative could only go to the region when the Olympic Games are over, starting on February 20, and on the condition that it be a “friendly” visit, not framed as an investigation.
However, the High Commissioner’s spokesman, Rupert Colville, responded that Michelle Bachelet is in talks with the Chinese government for a possible visit in the first half of 2022, but that it must be “significant, with unsupervised access” to the region. from Xinjiang.
Beijing has come under long-standing criticism for allegations of human rights abuses against ethnic minorities, as well as a crackdown on free speech.
Beijing’s policies towards Hong Kong have added to the widespread rejection in recent years. And more recently, the case of Olympic tennis player Peng Shuai, who accused former Vice Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexual harassment.
Initially, the unknown whereabouts of the athlete after making the public statements, and later her appearances in which she changed her version and claimed to be fine, have not diminished the concerns of the sports community about her condition.
Beijing denies all allegations of abuse against Uyghurs and other Turkish Muslims and has described its policies as “necessary” to combat religious extremism.
With Reuters, AP and EFE
First modification:
An alliance of 243 human rights organizations, led by Human Rights Watch, is calling for an international diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing a week before the Games begin. The denouncers demand a forceful pronouncement for the abuses of the authorities, especially against the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities. China accepted a UN visit, but after the event ends.
“The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will open amid atrocities and other serious human rights violations by the Chinese government,” say 243 organizations calling for a boycott of the iconic sporting event.
Human Rights Watch, Frontline Defenders and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers are among the movements urging the world’s politicians to express their protest a week before the Games start.
“It is not possible for the Olympics to be a ‘force for good,’ as the International Olympic Committee claims, while the host government is committing serious crimes in violation of international law,” said Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch. .
Through a statement issued on January 28, the NGOs assure that they documented numerous cases of abuses such as the detention, torture and forced labor of Uyghurs, attacks on press freedom and the alleged use of technology for surveillance, which violates the citizen privacy.
Zumretay Arkin, of the World Uyghur Congress, asserted that his people are suffering “the largest campaign of mass arrests since the Holocaust,” with forced sterilizations, induced abortions, cultural destruction, family separations, and all of this “contributed to by foreign companies that source from Xinjiang,” he stressed.
For the whistleblowers, a boycott of the Olympics would be a significant blow to the Chinese government that would affect its international image. Brian Leung, executive director of the Democratic Council of Hong Kong (in exile), pointed out that if athletes and governments raise their voices against it, there would be a starting point for not normalizing what is happening in the Asian nation.
China “is more hostile than ever to human rights discourse” and is succeeding in “normalizing self-censorship,” Leung stressed.
On December 6, Washington announced a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics for the “atrocities” of DD. H H. in China and as a domino effect its position was followed by Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada.
However, France and Germany were against the veto. “We must be careful with the link between sport and politics (…) Sport is a separate world that must be protected from political interference. Otherwise, things can get out of control and end up killing all competitions, he indicated then the French Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer.
China accepts UN visit after Games
Amid the international resonance, the local press reported that the Xi Jinping government agreed to a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, to the province of Xinjiang, where the large-scale abuses are being committed. .
It is a step that the United Nations has tried to negotiate for years and so far to no avail.
The newspaper ‘South China Morning Post’, citing unidentified sources, reported that Bachelet’s presence there would be conditioned. The United Nations representative could only go to the region when the Olympic Games are over, starting on February 20, and on the condition that it be a “friendly” visit, not framed as an investigation.
However, the High Commissioner’s spokesman, Rupert Colville, responded that Michelle Bachelet is in talks with the Chinese government for a possible visit in the first half of 2022, but that it must be “significant, with unsupervised access” to the region. from Xinjiang.
Beijing has come under long-standing criticism for allegations of human rights abuses against ethnic minorities, as well as a crackdown on free speech.
Beijing’s policies towards Hong Kong have added to the widespread rejection in recent years. And more recently, the case of Olympic tennis player Peng Shuai, who accused former Vice Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexual harassment.
Initially, the unknown whereabouts of the athlete after making the public statements, and later her appearances in which she changed her version and claimed to be fine, have not diminished the concerns of the sports community about her condition.
Beijing denies all allegations of abuse against Uyghurs and other Turkish Muslims and has described its policies as “necessary” to combat religious extremism.
With Reuters, AP and EFE
First modification:
An alliance of 243 human rights organizations, led by Human Rights Watch, is calling for an international diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics in Beijing a week before the Games begin. The denouncers demand a forceful pronouncement for the abuses of the authorities, especially against the Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities. China accepted a UN visit, but after the event ends.
“The 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics will open amid atrocities and other serious human rights violations by the Chinese government,” say 243 organizations calling for a boycott of the iconic sporting event.
Human Rights Watch, Frontline Defenders and Women’s Rights Without Frontiers are among the movements urging the world’s politicians to express their protest a week before the Games start.
“It is not possible for the Olympics to be a ‘force for good,’ as the International Olympic Committee claims, while the host government is committing serious crimes in violation of international law,” said Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch. .
Through a statement issued on January 28, the NGOs assure that they documented numerous cases of abuses such as the detention, torture and forced labor of Uyghurs, attacks on press freedom and the alleged use of technology for surveillance, which violates the citizen privacy.
Zumretay Arkin, of the World Uyghur Congress, asserted that his people are suffering “the largest campaign of mass arrests since the Holocaust,” with forced sterilizations, induced abortions, cultural destruction, family separations, and all of this “contributed to by foreign companies that source from Xinjiang,” he stressed.
For the whistleblowers, a boycott of the Olympics would be a significant blow to the Chinese government that would affect its international image. Brian Leung, executive director of the Democratic Council of Hong Kong (in exile), pointed out that if athletes and governments raise their voices against it, there would be a starting point for not normalizing what is happening in the Asian nation.
China “is more hostile than ever to human rights discourse” and is succeeding in “normalizing self-censorship,” Leung stressed.
On December 6, Washington announced a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics for the “atrocities” of DD. H H. in China and as a domino effect its position was followed by Australia, the United Kingdom, Japan and Canada.
However, France and Germany were against the veto. “We must be careful with the link between sport and politics (…) Sport is a separate world that must be protected from political interference. Otherwise, things can get out of control and end up killing all competitions, he indicated then the French Minister of Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer.
China accepts UN visit after Games
Amid the international resonance, the local press reported that the Xi Jinping government agreed to a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, to the province of Xinjiang, where the large-scale abuses are being committed. .
It is a step that the United Nations has tried to negotiate for years and so far to no avail.
The newspaper ‘South China Morning Post’, citing unidentified sources, reported that Bachelet’s presence there would be conditioned. The United Nations representative could only go to the region when the Olympic Games are over, starting on February 20, and on the condition that it be a “friendly” visit, not framed as an investigation.
However, the High Commissioner’s spokesman, Rupert Colville, responded that Michelle Bachelet is in talks with the Chinese government for a possible visit in the first half of 2022, but that it must be “significant, with unsupervised access” to the region. from Xinjiang.
Beijing has come under long-standing criticism for allegations of human rights abuses against ethnic minorities, as well as a crackdown on free speech.
Beijing’s policies towards Hong Kong have added to the widespread rejection in recent years. And more recently, the case of Olympic tennis player Peng Shuai, who accused former Vice Prime Minister Zhang Gaoli of sexual harassment.
Initially, the unknown whereabouts of the athlete after making the public statements, and later her appearances in which she changed her version and claimed to be fine, have not diminished the concerns of the sports community about her condition.
Beijing denies all allegations of abuse against Uyghurs and other Turkish Muslims and has described its policies as “necessary” to combat religious extremism.
With Reuters, AP and EFE