Over 160 rights groups call on IOC chief to revoke 2022 Beijing Winter Games
Over 160 human rights advocacy groups have delivered a joint letter to the chief of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) calling for it to reconsider its choice to award China the 2022 Winter Games in light of Beijingās human rights record.
It is the largest coordinated effort following several months of similar calls from individual rights groups, and comes as Beijing is facing increased international backlash over policies including its treatment of ethnic Uighurs in Xinjiang and new security laws in Hong Kong.
Separately, in an open letter released Wednesday, a coalition of over 300 civil society groups including Human Rights Watch called for the U.N. to set up an independent international mechanism to monitor and report on the human rights situation in China.
#China #Olympics #IOC #Uighurs
Source: Reuters #Sep16
Over 160 human rights advocacy groups have delivered a joint letter to the chief of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) calling for it to reconsider its choice to award China the 2022 Winter Games in light of Beijingās human rights record.
It is the largest coordinated effort following several months of similar calls from individual rights groups, and comes as Beijing is facing increased international backlash over policies including its treatment of ethnic Uighurs in Xinjiang and new security laws in Hong Kong.
Separately, in an open letter released Wednesday, a coalition of over 300 civil society groups including Human Rights Watch called for the U.N. to set up an independent international mechanism to monitor and report on the human rights situation in China.
#China #Olympics #IOC #Uighurs
Source: Reuters #Sep16
International Olympics Commission Purchasing Chinese Vaccines. Japanās Olympic Minister: Did Not Know about This Beforehand and Japanese Athletes Will Not Be Administered with the Chinese Vaccines
According to a report from Asahi Shimbun, after attending a cabinet meeting on 12th March, Japanās Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa was asked by reporters about International Olympics Commission (IOC) Chairperson Thomas Bachās announcement of purchasing COVID-19 vaccines from China. Marukawa indicated that she did not know about this beforehand. She said there is no arrangement with IOC and no adjustments are needed regarding this issue. She also emphasized that having received COVID-19 vaccines will not be a prerequisite for participating in the Tokyo Olympics, that this principle remains the same. Marukawa further indicated that the Japanese government does not have more information about this issue, that āall the information we know is from IOCās website and reports from news mediaā.
#Olympics #China #Japan #Vaccine #COVID19 #VaccineDiplomacy
Source: Stand News #Mar12
https://bit.ly/3c79oy9
According to a report from Asahi Shimbun, after attending a cabinet meeting on 12th March, Japanās Olympic Minister Tamayo Marukawa was asked by reporters about International Olympics Commission (IOC) Chairperson Thomas Bachās announcement of purchasing COVID-19 vaccines from China. Marukawa indicated that she did not know about this beforehand. She said there is no arrangement with IOC and no adjustments are needed regarding this issue. She also emphasized that having received COVID-19 vaccines will not be a prerequisite for participating in the Tokyo Olympics, that this principle remains the same. Marukawa further indicated that the Japanese government does not have more information about this issue, that āall the information we know is from IOCās website and reports from news mediaā.
#Olympics #China #Japan #Vaccine #COVID19 #VaccineDiplomacy
Source: Stand News #Mar12
https://bit.ly/3c79oy9
Revealed in Purchasing Uniforms from Xinjiang Cotton Enterprises; International Olympics Committee: Politically neutral, No right to Change the Sovereignty State System
Xinjiang cotton was accused of being involved in forced labour and was suspended by several international fashion brands. US media AXIOS discovered that the International Olympics Committee purchased uniforms from a Chinese enterprise Hengyuanxiang, but Hengyuanxiang always labels their products are made by Xinjiang cotton. International Olympics Committee responded that they had no right to change the political system in the sovereign country due to their political neutrality. Hengyuanxiang submitted a certificate to the International Olympics Committee, proving the uniforms' cotton is not from China.
According to AXIOS, International Olympics Committee signed a contract with Hengyuanxiang in September 2019. Hengyuanxiang will supply the uniforms to the International Olympics Committee members at the ceremonies at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
The report described that the International Olympics Committee had a close relationship with Hengyuanxiang, who sponsored the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lots of products in the online shops of Hengyuanxiang in TaoBao and Jindong are also using āXinjiang cottonā for soliciting. According to the website information, Hengyuanxiang is responsible to supervise multiple outsourcing factories, and one of them is from Xinjiang.
Source: Stand News #Apr07
https://bit.ly/3fVnkxv
#Xinjiang #InternationalOlympicsCommittee #Hengyuanxiang #ForcedLabour #Politics #China #Beijing #Tokyo #Olympics
Xinjiang cotton was accused of being involved in forced labour and was suspended by several international fashion brands. US media AXIOS discovered that the International Olympics Committee purchased uniforms from a Chinese enterprise Hengyuanxiang, but Hengyuanxiang always labels their products are made by Xinjiang cotton. International Olympics Committee responded that they had no right to change the political system in the sovereign country due to their political neutrality. Hengyuanxiang submitted a certificate to the International Olympics Committee, proving the uniforms' cotton is not from China.
According to AXIOS, International Olympics Committee signed a contract with Hengyuanxiang in September 2019. Hengyuanxiang will supply the uniforms to the International Olympics Committee members at the ceremonies at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
The report described that the International Olympics Committee had a close relationship with Hengyuanxiang, who sponsored the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Lots of products in the online shops of Hengyuanxiang in TaoBao and Jindong are also using āXinjiang cottonā for soliciting. According to the website information, Hengyuanxiang is responsible to supervise multiple outsourcing factories, and one of them is from Xinjiang.
Source: Stand News #Apr07
https://bit.ly/3fVnkxv
#Xinjiang #InternationalOlympicsCommittee #Hengyuanxiang #ForcedLabour #Politics #China #Beijing #Tokyo #Olympics
Olympics sponsors duck questions over Beijing 2022 as boycott calls grow
Multinational companies sponsoring the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games are evading questions about their participation as China comes under intense pressure over the repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang.
As calls for a boycott of the event grow among activists, companies are increasingly being urged to take a stand over Xinjiang ā at the same time as the Chinese government has encouraged boycotts of brands that speak out.
Letters from human rights groups have gone unanswered and 11 of the 13 companies that have major sponsorship deals with the International Olympic Committee that include the Beijing games did not comment when asked by the Financial Times if they were reconsidering their plans.
Source: Financial Times #May06
https://www.ft.com/content/bf07dfb7-f70a-4008-8ab1-2b23bfbfb84d
#Olympics #Beijing #Boycott
Multinational companies sponsoring the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games are evading questions about their participation as China comes under intense pressure over the repression of Uyghurs in Xinjiang.
As calls for a boycott of the event grow among activists, companies are increasingly being urged to take a stand over Xinjiang ā at the same time as the Chinese government has encouraged boycotts of brands that speak out.
Letters from human rights groups have gone unanswered and 11 of the 13 companies that have major sponsorship deals with the International Olympic Committee that include the Beijing games did not comment when asked by the Financial Times if they were reconsidering their plans.
Source: Financial Times #May06
https://www.ft.com/content/bf07dfb7-f70a-4008-8ab1-2b23bfbfb84d
#Olympics #Beijing #Boycott
US broaches boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics
The Biden administration has floated the idea of a boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics to protest against the persecution of Uyghurs in Chinaās Xinjiang province.
Ned Price, US state department spokesperson, said the boycott was one option āon the agendaā as the Biden administration discussed its approach to China and the Beijing Olympics with allies.
Asked at a press briefing if the US was discussing a joint boycott, Price said: āIt is something that we certainly wish to discuss . . . A co-ordinated approach will be not only in our interest, but also in the interest of our allies and partners.ā
Source: Financial Times #Apr07
https://www.ft.com/content/92d57e46-4c63-46f2-be08-de8a9954256e
#US #Boycott #Beijing #Winter #Olympics #Biden
The Biden administration has floated the idea of a boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics to protest against the persecution of Uyghurs in Chinaās Xinjiang province.
Ned Price, US state department spokesperson, said the boycott was one option āon the agendaā as the Biden administration discussed its approach to China and the Beijing Olympics with allies.
Asked at a press briefing if the US was discussing a joint boycott, Price said: āIt is something that we certainly wish to discuss . . . A co-ordinated approach will be not only in our interest, but also in the interest of our allies and partners.ā
Source: Financial Times #Apr07
https://www.ft.com/content/92d57e46-4c63-46f2-be08-de8a9954256e
#US #Boycott #Beijing #Winter #Olympics #Biden
AP Exclusive: Full-blown boycott pushed for Beijing Olympics
Groups alleging human-rights abuses against minorities in China are calling for a full-blown boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, a move likely to ratchet up pressure on the International Olympic Committee, athletes, sponsors and sports federations.
A coalition representing Uyghurs, Tibetans, residents of Hong Kong and others issued a statement Monday calling for the boycott, eschewing lesser measures that had been floated like ādiplomatic boycotts" and further negotiations with the IOC or China.
āThe time for talking with the IOC is over,ā Lhadon Tethong of the Tibet Action Institute said in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press. āThis cannot be games as usual or business as usual; not for the IOC and not for the international community.ā
Source: Click2houston #May17
https://www.click2houston.com/sports/2021/05/17/ap-exclusive-full-blown-boycott-pushed-for-beijing-olympics/
#Boycott #Beijing #Olympics #HumanRights
Groups alleging human-rights abuses against minorities in China are calling for a full-blown boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, a move likely to ratchet up pressure on the International Olympic Committee, athletes, sponsors and sports federations.
A coalition representing Uyghurs, Tibetans, residents of Hong Kong and others issued a statement Monday calling for the boycott, eschewing lesser measures that had been floated like ādiplomatic boycotts" and further negotiations with the IOC or China.
āThe time for talking with the IOC is over,ā Lhadon Tethong of the Tibet Action Institute said in an exclusive interview with The Associated Press. āThis cannot be games as usual or business as usual; not for the IOC and not for the international community.ā
Source: Click2houston #May17
https://www.click2houston.com/sports/2021/05/17/ap-exclusive-full-blown-boycott-pushed-for-beijing-olympics/
#Boycott #Beijing #Olympics #HumanRights
Relocate the Olympics or Condone Genocide
The world may finally be waking up to the horrors of the genocide being committed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) against the Uyghur people in China. The parallels between the CCPās treatment of the Uyghurs and the Nazi Partyās treatment of Jews and other minorities are undeniable, from implementing mass sterilization of Uyghur women to interning Uyghurs in concentration camps and forcing them to perform slave labor in Chinese factories.
Thus far, the worldās response has eerily recalled the failed reaction to dictator Adolf Hitlerās atrocities in the 1930s and 1940s. Despite admirable efforts by the United States and other democracies to galvanize action in support of the Uyghurs, many countries and international organizations remain silent or feign ignorance on the ongoing Uyghur genocide out of concern regarding Chinese retribution.
Source: Foreign Policy #Jun02
https://bit.ly/3uQ7XKv
#Uyghur #China #CCP #Beijing #Olympics #Boycott
The world may finally be waking up to the horrors of the genocide being committed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) against the Uyghur people in China. The parallels between the CCPās treatment of the Uyghurs and the Nazi Partyās treatment of Jews and other minorities are undeniable, from implementing mass sterilization of Uyghur women to interning Uyghurs in concentration camps and forcing them to perform slave labor in Chinese factories.
Thus far, the worldās response has eerily recalled the failed reaction to dictator Adolf Hitlerās atrocities in the 1930s and 1940s. Despite admirable efforts by the United States and other democracies to galvanize action in support of the Uyghurs, many countries and international organizations remain silent or feign ignorance on the ongoing Uyghur genocide out of concern regarding Chinese retribution.
Source: Foreign Policy #Jun02
https://bit.ly/3uQ7XKv
#Uyghur #China #CCP #Beijing #Olympics #Boycott
Politicians push Beijing Winter Olympics ādiplomatic boycottā across 11 Western countries
A group of politicians across Europe and North America launched coordinated legislative actions on Monday, calling for a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Spanning 11 countries and parliaments, the actions aim to pressure governments, elected officials and heads of state to decline invitations to next yearās Games, citing āgross violations of human rightsā by the Chinese government.
In the United States, a resolution supported by the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, Gregory Meeks, calls for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to instigate emergency measures to find a replacement venue, āgiven ongoing crimes against humanity committed by the host governmentā.
Source: Yahoo #Jun07
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/politicians-push-beijing-winter-olympics-230016602.html
#Beijing #Winter #Olympics #Boycott
A group of politicians across Europe and North America launched coordinated legislative actions on Monday, calling for a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Spanning 11 countries and parliaments, the actions aim to pressure governments, elected officials and heads of state to decline invitations to next yearās Games, citing āgross violations of human rightsā by the Chinese government.
In the United States, a resolution supported by the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, Gregory Meeks, calls for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to instigate emergency measures to find a replacement venue, āgiven ongoing crimes against humanity committed by the host governmentā.
Source: Yahoo #Jun07
https://sg.news.yahoo.com/politicians-push-beijing-winter-olympics-230016602.html
#Beijing #Winter #Olympics #Boycott
If Uyghur Lives Matter, the Olympics Should Move
The following article was written by Rayhan Asat, whose brother Ekpar Asat has been detained by Chinese authotities at a prison camp:
//I cheered China on from Wuhan in 2008, when Beijing hosted the Summer Olympics. Thirteen years later, Iām advocating for the 2022 Winter Olympics to be relocated from Beijing, and for a diplomatic boycott if that option fails.
My position shifted drastically because China, a country I hoped would move in a more democratic direction, instead has reached new levels of cruelty.
The government has subjected my brother, Ekpar Asat, to the torture of indefinite solitary confinement, far from home, in the notorious Aksu prison camps...//
Source: WSJ #Jun16
Read more:
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/if-uyghur-lives-matter-the-olympics-should-move-11623881691
#Uyghur #Lives #Olympics #China #Wuhan #Beijing
The following article was written by Rayhan Asat, whose brother Ekpar Asat has been detained by Chinese authotities at a prison camp:
//I cheered China on from Wuhan in 2008, when Beijing hosted the Summer Olympics. Thirteen years later, Iām advocating for the 2022 Winter Olympics to be relocated from Beijing, and for a diplomatic boycott if that option fails.
My position shifted drastically because China, a country I hoped would move in a more democratic direction, instead has reached new levels of cruelty.
The government has subjected my brother, Ekpar Asat, to the torture of indefinite solitary confinement, far from home, in the notorious Aksu prison camps...//
Source: WSJ #Jun16
Read more:
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/if-uyghur-lives-matter-the-olympics-should-move-11623881691
#Uyghur #Lives #Olympics #China #Wuhan #Beijing
Republicans Want Digital Yuan Restricted at Beijing Olympics
āRepublican Senators Marsha Blackburn, Roger Wicker, and Cynthia Lummis urged the U.S. Olympic Committee to forbid American athletes from using Chinaās new digital currency at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, citing espionage and data-security concerns.
āOlympic athletes should be aware that the digital yuan may be used to surveil Chinese citizens and those visiting China on an unprecedented scale, with the hopes that they will maintain digital yuan wallets on their smartphones and continue to use it upon return,ā the lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Monday to Susanne Lyons, board chair of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Source: Bloomberg #Jul20
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-19/republicans-want-digital-yuan-restricted-at-beijing-olympics
#Restricted #Beijing #Olympics
āRepublican Senators Marsha Blackburn, Roger Wicker, and Cynthia Lummis urged the U.S. Olympic Committee to forbid American athletes from using Chinaās new digital currency at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, citing espionage and data-security concerns.
āOlympic athletes should be aware that the digital yuan may be used to surveil Chinese citizens and those visiting China on an unprecedented scale, with the hopes that they will maintain digital yuan wallets on their smartphones and continue to use it upon return,ā the lawmakers wrote in a letter sent Monday to Susanne Lyons, board chair of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Source: Bloomberg #Jul20
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-19/republicans-want-digital-yuan-restricted-at-beijing-olympics
#Restricted #Beijing #Olympics
U.S. lawmakers blast Coca-Cola, Visa and other sponsors of Beijing Olympics
A bipartisan panel in the U.S. Congress on Tuesday blasted U.S.-based corporate sponsors of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, including Coca-Cola, Visa Inc and Airbnb, accusing them of putting profits ahead of accusations of genocide in China.
Republican Representative Chris Smith said in a hearing of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China that the sponsors needed to reconcile their "ostensible commitment to human rights" with subsidizing an Olympics where the host country is "actively committing human rights abuses."
Source: Reuters #Jul28
https://reut.rs/3i711Wn
#US #CocaCola #Visa #Sponsor #Beijing #Olympics
A bipartisan panel in the U.S. Congress on Tuesday blasted U.S.-based corporate sponsors of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, including Coca-Cola, Visa Inc and Airbnb, accusing them of putting profits ahead of accusations of genocide in China.
Republican Representative Chris Smith said in a hearing of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China that the sponsors needed to reconcile their "ostensible commitment to human rights" with subsidizing an Olympics where the host country is "actively committing human rights abuses."
Source: Reuters #Jul28
https://reut.rs/3i711Wn
#US #CocaCola #Visa #Sponsor #Beijing #Olympics