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Beijing Winter Olympics to Continue Amid Diplomatic Showdown by Casey Ann McKee

January 10, 2022 | World News

The United States is no longer the only country endorsing a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics. The past several weeks have been filled with statements made by the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Lithuania, and Japan* declaring that they will follow the U.S. in their decision to symbolically condemn China for their violence against the Uyghur people in Xinjiang.

In an article by the The New York Times, Senator Bob Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey and the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee stated that “This boycott is a necessary step to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to human rights in the face of the Chinese government’s unconscionable abuses.” John Rutwich, reporting for Byline, additionally stated that after a discussion with California State Fullerton's associate professor Toby Rider, Rider believes that the U.S’s decision “probably won't have much effect on China's human rights, and it's relatively low stakes for the Biden administration.” While the decision may not have a direct impact on the situation in Xinjiang, it violates not only human rights, but also the International Olympics Committee’s role in upholding a “peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.” (The Olympic Charter). The decision was one made after careful consideration of the Chinese government and evaluation by the U.S. Government officials of the abusive actions taken against the Xinjiang province’s largest minority group.

The abuses, which the Chinese government has been deemed responsible for, include the detainment of over one million Uyghurs- a Turkish ethnic group located in the northwestern region of Xinjiang. Evidence indicates that the Uyghur people have been sentenced to prison terms, forced into labor, and condemned to sterilization by the Chinese government. This is not China’s first offense of discrimination directed towards the Muslim community- the country’s largest region has additionally engaged in the destruction of mosques and decreased tolerance of religious practices. China has yet to take responsibility for these alleged violations and has deemed them as "ridiculously absurd" and "a complete lie" (BBC).

The decision to diplomatically boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics immediately raised the question of whether or not this would affect the athletes who have trained tirelessly for many years towards competing in 2022. In previous years, Olympics boycotts included countries completely withdrawing all athletics and political participation from the games. The U.S. stated that athletes will be permitted to participate in the games and that their participation is supported by their respective countries. Due to the ineffectiveness of previous country-wide protests that penalized Olympic athletes, the Olympic Committee has additionally come forward to state that athletes are encouraged and welcomed to participate in the games despite the diplomatic decisions made by the country that they represent.

The controversy that surrounds the statements being made by boycotting countries have sparked curiosity as to how China will respond to the large-scale allegations. Chemi Lhamo, a Toronto-based Canadian Tibetan rights activist stated that athletes and participants of the 2022 Olympics should be wary of what their participation could mean in the condemnation of China’s actions. She pressed the idea that athletes risk "becoming a tool or a medium to be legitimizing the human rights abuses of the Chinese government,” if they chose to participate in the games.

In the United States, the decision to diplomatically boycott the games has been met with little criticism thus far. Several U.S. diplomats have spoken out on how they believe that the boycott is not enough to justify the genocide in Xinjiang. Senator Edward. J Markey (D-Mass) stated that “We should not give cover to the Government of China to whitewash their atrocities and human rights abuses.” Additionally, Senators Mitt Romney (R-UT) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) announced a joint statement which applauded the Biden Administration’s decision. Within their statement, the pair said that “Never again must the Olympics be awarded to a nation which so blatantly violates the human rights of its own citizens.”

The IOC has chosen to remain neutral thus far on the matter, instead focusing their statements around encouraging athletes to participate. It is predicted that many athletes will be urged to make statements regarding how they view the matter if electing to attend the games which is likely to spark another controversy of its own. Despite the ease of utilizing the Olympics games as a scapegoat in holding China responsible for their actions, this boycott has the potential of putting athletes at risk and forcing them into a situation driven by politics.

*In lieu of sending a diplomatic official, Japan will send top officials from last year’s Tokyo Olympics. Due to Japan’s close relationship with China as a trade partner, this decision stands beside the United States while not standing fully against China.

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