The Conflict of Interest Ahead of Winter Olympics

By Mehak Kulaar

The United States along with European Union (EU), the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia have declared a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. For a while now, several countries have encouraged nations to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing over the alleged Chinese government’s abuse of human rights. China has been facing backlash for its authoritarian regime on a domestic and international level. Instead of the same, several cases of human rights violations on China’s part have been brought to the forefront and stated as the reason for this boycott.

Why are they boycotting the Beijing Olympics?

China is being confronted by intense criticism for its human rights record. A few nations, including the United States, have blamed China for committing genocide against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang district, charges that China denies. Rights groups have additionally pointed out Beijing’s suppression in Tibet and its crackdown on freedom in Hong Kong. The disappearance of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai from the public eye in November added to worries.

While several western countries have followed in US’s footsteps, many have refused to escalate this to a full boycott of the event.

China’s action at domestic and international field

China has been in the limelight for its authoritarian policies that have started to become extremely unjustified in the eyes of many international organizations and leaders. Here are several incidents wherein China has breached not only human rights but several international laws.

China’s behaviour with Uyghurs

China has been blamed for carrying out acts of extreme injustice and conceivably genocide against the Uyghur populace and other Muslim ethnic groups in the north-western locale of Xinjiang.

Human rights groups believe China has detained more than one million Uyghurs against their will over the past few years in a large network of what the state calls “re-education camps”, and condemned thousands to jail terms.

Additionally, proof that Uyghurs are being pushed into forced labour and women being forcibly sterilized has surfaced. Some previous camp detainees have additionally affirmed they were tormented and physically abused.

Earlier this year several countries like the US, UK, Netherlands and Canada declared China’s ongoing crackdown in the Xinjiang region a “genocide”.

China & Tibet’s annexation

It isn’t just the Uyghurs that the Chinese government is cracking down on.

Tibet has been under China’s occupation since the 1950s. China’s military attacked and assumed control over the land. In the years since Tibetan culture has disintegrated and any pursuit for Tibetan freedom has been met with jail time, brutality and suppression.

China has completely denied access to Western journalists or lawmakers to enter the region. Following the protests of 2008 (before the Beijing Olympics) China increased its crackdown on Tibet.

Following up on this year, there was another protest to boycott the games at the flame-lighting ceremony that was conducted in Greece in October. Tibetan students unfurled Tibet’s flag and a banner stating “no genocide games”.

China’s Aggression towards Hong Kong

On top of these abominations, China has been crushing internal dissent, especially in Hong Kong. China effectively ended Hong Kong people’s greatest push yet for democracy. They have positioned a sweeping national security law to rebuff anything it considers as subversion, secession, terrorism or collusion with foreign forces.

China has also made radical changes to Hong Kong’s electoral system and political structure, diminishing democratic participation. It also set up a reviewing and screening mechanism that guarantees all government officials and the people who aspire for public office are “patriotic.”

China’s showdown with Canada

China has likewise locked horns with different nations. The Chinese government subjectively detained two Canadians — Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig from December 2018 to September 2021. They were reportedly thrown in Chinese prison only 10 days after Canada’s arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver.

The two men’s freedom came only hours after Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou secured a deal with U.S. prosecutors to drop the charges against her and the extradition order that had been keeping her in Canada since December 2018.

Following this, the country’s disregard and aggression towards the rules-based international order have raised concerns among several countries about the need to take a united stand against China’s conduct publicly.

What is a diplomatic boycott and how is the world reacting to it?

This means the countries will not send any delegates to the Games. These figures are usually high-ranking politicians or members of a country’s royal family and typically appear at the opening and closing ceremonies and some of the competitions. The Olympic Games have historically been viewed by nations as an opportunity for world leaders to meet.

As of now, all countries that have announced a diplomatic boycott are still sending their athletes.

This is the first time countries have opted for a purely diplomatic boycott of the Olympics. While the above-named countries are taking a political stance, some others have expressed that they will not follow suit, at least in the form of a diplomatic boycott. Countries like Russia have stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be at the opening ceremony. French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said that the country would not join the boycott. Along with these, Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan would make its own decision “from the perspective of national interests, taking into consideration the significance of the Olympic Games and the significance of Japan’s diplomacy. This is the basic attitude of our country.”

How effective is a diplomatic boycott?

By correlation, a diplomatic boycott, sometimes called the politician boycott, appears like a “light” form of not sending participants to the Olympics, however just from the outset. At the 2012 European Football Championship in Poland and Ukraine, the members from the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, and numerous European heads of government turned down all invitations to matches in Ukraine to fight the imprisonment of the then opposition politician, Yulia Tymoshenko.

Conversely, the absence of previous German President Joachim Gauck from the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russia made headlines in Germany yet scarcely made a dent globally. Gauck defended his refusal by referring to human rights infringement in Russia.

A diplomatic boycott becomes more effective the more governments take part, especially when dealing with countries like Russia or China.

How is China reacting to the boycott?

China’s foreign service has cautioned of a “robust response” including taking undefined “countermeasures” against the United States over its diplomatic boycott. Specialists call attention to the fact that Beijing has numerous ways to fight back.

The Chinese government could suspend bilateral trades and participation in global discussions, for example, those on climate change; disrupt trade; sanction foreign officials. Indeed, there are endless models as of late of Beijing fighting back against foreign actions it opposed.

China could likewise use its huge consumer market of 1.4 billion people to harm companies that pull out help for the games. For instance, recently, brands including H&M and Nike confronted boycotts by a portion of the Chinese public after the companies said they would stop utilizing cotton from Xinjiang.