First off, let me tell you a short disclaimer to what I'm about to write. I greatly respect all of the international athletes that are going to participate in this summer's Olympics. I respect their hard work and determination to enter into the world's greatest international athletic competition and their desire to represent their countries.
However, I am still not going to watch the Olympics. I do not know what the IOC (International Olympic Committee) was thinking when they decided on Beijing, but I do know why many people have a problem with it.
1) China is one of the world's worst violators of human rights. Not only is China known for persecuting Christians and persons of religious beliefs, but it is also supporting other governments that possess equally reprehensible human rights records. For example, China is the primary customer of Sudanese oil. In fact, Khartoum, Sudan's infamous capital that was once the home of Osama bin Laden and Carlos the Jackal, has been experiencing economic growth thanks to China's purchasing of Sudanese oil1. Because of these purchases, China is supporting the same government that has equipped the janjaweed to massacre Christians and others in what has become known as the Darfur Genocide. Near the beginning of the conflict, the Sudanese government appeared to be the major source for the janjaweed's firepower. However, because the Sudanese have supplied China with oil, the Chinese have in return supplied the Sudanese government with arms (if you thought Russian Kalashnikovs were bad, try a Chinese knock off). Where do you think these weapons are going? To the janjaweed. It appears that China will do anything to satisfy its ever-growing hunger for black gold, going so far as to arm radical Muslims that are murdering and raping thousands of innocent men, women, and children.
2) Besides supplying arms to Sudan, reports have also indicated that China has been sending arms to Zimbabwe. In the past, Zimbabwe was the so-called "breadbasket" of Africa because of its ability to grow large amounts of food; enough food to feed the people of other African countries. However, after Mugabe's election, the farmers and those associated with Zimbabwe's excellent food production were driven out and replaced with those unable to tend to the land2. Zimbabwe now cannot even feed its own people and was recently in the midst of hyperinflation3. China has been sending arms to Zimbabwe, and recently a South African port refused to unload a shipment of Chinese arms headed for Zimbabwe4. Zimbabwe is (was) known for being the breadbasket of Africa, so a possible conclusion to come to is that China is trying to bring back the infrastructure that once existed in Zimbabwe. Why? Well, if Zimbabwe has the capability to affect the food supply of nearly an entire continent, imagine the influence China could have in the continent if it assisted in bringing back Zimbabwe's infrastructure.
3) In looking back at other controversial Olympic meetings (1936 Berlin, 1956 Australia, 1980s Summer Olympics, etc.) it is hard to find a direct comparison to the situation at hand with China. Currently, China possesses a terrible human rights record, has an iron grip on Tibet, and has its eye on Taiwan. Remember, we have vowed that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would draw an immediate military response from the United States. Among other things, these cases present an interesting situation that appears to be different from most seen in the past.
I could go on about some other issues, especially China’s domestic human rights record, but I think that that situation is pretty self-evident.
There is one point that I shall concede to anyone who wants to debate this issue. If the holding of the Olympics in China increases international awareness of China’s despicable human rights record, then so be it.
1. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21143-2004Dec22.html
2. http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200312/power
3. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/02/world/africa/02zimbabwe.html?ex=1304222400&en=e4f95916b4e5d098&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
4. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article3822568.ece
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3 comments:
I don't know whether or not I'll watch the Olympics this year, but I agree with you about the problems of China hosting it.
There is one point that I shall concede to anyone who wants to debate this issue. If the holding of the Olympics in China increases international awareness of China’s despicable human rights record, then so be it.
I ask those who advocate this point: Can you shame someone by honoring them? That seems a very twisted way to try to convince them! Honoring China by granting them the opportunity to host the Olympics will not cause them to be any more likely to uphold human rights. It just says to them that any international outcry against their violations is merely a show to save face. Having the Olympics in China may increase international awareness of what happens there, but I don't think it will improve China's human rights standard.
China has the Western world around its finger.
This is just one case of economic blackmail: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article3767882.ece
A French company takes a pro-Tibet stance, China threatens to stop shipping them cheap goods, French company is now a happy supporter of the wonderful Chinese government.
Someday soon, China will rule the world.
Agreed. China should not be hosting the Olympics, but neither should the USA, nor France, nor Germany, nor any country that sells weapons to Third World buyers. This is from a Mother Jones article:
"What we found is that while the U.S. obviously sells weapons to NATO countries and relatively democratic allies like Japan and South Korea, it also has a nasty habit of arming both sides in a conflict, as well as countries with blighted democracy or human-rights records, like Indonesia, Colombia, and Saudi Arabia."
http://www.motherjones.com/news/special_reports/arms/
So before we cast the first stone...
The US invaded a sovereign nation (Iraq) based on faulty (some say trumped up) intelligence. So let's not castigate China on Tibet when US military presence is entrenched in several dozen countries around the planet. Keeping the peace? No, protecting US investments, past , present and future.
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