The USA, UK, Canada and Australia have all announced that they are carrying out diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympic Games 2022, which begun last week. A diplomatic boycott means that all athletes can still travel and compete in the Beijing Games but political diplomats will not attend the Olympics. Each state who has already committed to boycotting the Games in Beijing has cited human rights abuses as the cause of the diplomatic boycotting.
An independent UK-based tribunal found that China committed genocide against Uyghurs. Uyghurs are the second-largest Muslim ethnic group in China, and yet they are still being targeted!
Genocide, which is classed as an atrocity crime, is the deliberate killing of a ethnic group or nation in order to destroy this group. Crimes against humanity – another one of the atrocity crimes which the UN has set out – have also been committed against Uyghurs several sources cite. This has included forced sterilisation, torture and sexual violence. Despite the mounting evidence supporting the claim that atrocity crimes have been committed against Uyghurs, Chinese officials still deny the human rights violations.
The boycott is making a political stand to China, and the world, against the human rights violations which the State is committing. Additionally, the boycott is raising the profile of the abuses China is committing and providing further awareness of the continuing situation in the country. The news stories of diplomatic boycotting have been overshadowing and dominating the conversation surrounding the Olympics, and therefore tarnishing the Beijing Olympics.
Furthermore, China is deeply frustrated with the diplomatic boycott, warning that they will retaliate. However, this raises the question of whether the Olympics should be politicised. In particular because the role of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is committed to a principle of neutrality, and therefore remains out of international political disputes. Is this the correct course of action? Should the Olympics, and on a wider scale – sport, be politicised? Will the diplomatic boycott make an impact on the human rights abuses taking place in China?
However, these are not the first Olympic Games to be faced with diplomatic boycotts. For example, in 1980 the US and China both withdrew from the Moscow Olympics, this boycott involved the withdrawal of athletes and diplomats unlike the Beijing Olympics 2022 . In 1984, the USSR and allies retaliated and boycotted the Olympic Games in Los Angeles, in the USA.
The Beijing Winter Olympics begun on 4th February and will run until 20th February.
What do you think should be done?
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