Athletes traveling to the Beijing Winter Olympics were on Tuesday warned about speaking up on human rights issues while in China for their own safety by speakers at a seminar hosted by Human Rights Watch.
Rights groups have long criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for awarding the Games to China, citing the treatment by the Chinese government of Uighurs and other Muslim minority groups, which the US has deemed “genocide.”
China denies the allegations of human rights abuses.
“There’s really not much protection that we believe is going to be afforded to athletes,” Global Athlete director-general Rob Koehler told the seminar. “Silence is complicity and that’s why we have concerns. So we’re advising athletes not to speak up. We want them to compete and use their voice when they get home.”
Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter stipulates: “No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic site, venue or other area.”
“Chinese laws are very vague on the crimes that can be used to prosecute people’s free speech,” Human Rights Watch researcher Yaqiu Wang said. “People can be charged with picking quarrels or provoking trouble. There are all kinds of crimes that can be leveled at peaceful, critical comments.”
The US team is being shielded from questions about human rights, said Noah Hoffman, a cross-country skier who represented the US at the 2014 Sochi and 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games.
“I feel fear for my teammates going to China,” Hoffman said. “I know my teammates are being shielded about questions on these issues for their own safety. We should never have to protect athletes from speaking out about issues that they think are really important.”
“My hope for athletes there is that they stay silent because they are not only going to be prosecuted by the Chinese authorities, but they could also be punished by the IOC,” Hoffman added.
Concerns about data privacy and spying at the Games were raised on Tuesday when a smartphone app built by China to monitor the health of attendees was reported to contain security flaws.
“When it comes to surveillance, we know it’s there,” Koehler said. “There are reasons that several countries have come out and asked athletes not to bring their own mobile devices. Any person of a sane mind who hears these things must have concerns.”
The IOC said in an e-mailed response to a request for comment that the Olympic body at all times “recognizes and upholds human rights as enshrined in both the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter and in its code of ethics.”
The Winter Olympics begin on Feb. 4. Several countries, including the US, Britain, Japan and Australia, have announced diplomatic boycotts of the Games over concerns about human rights in China.
ANFIELD BLUES: Kylian Mbappe arrived at Anfield on a run of 21 goals in 17 games, but he managed just three attempts in the match, none of them hitting the target Kylian Mbappe has been nearly unstoppable this season, but he hit a roadblock in their UEFA Champions League match at Anfield on Tuesday. For the second year running, the Real Madrid forward had a night to forget at Merseyside as Liverpool won 1-0. Mbappe looked a shadow of the player who has been tearing defenses apart all season. “We were lacking that threat in the final third,” said Madrid coach Xabi Alonso, without naming Mbappe individually. The FIFA World Cup winner for France rarely looked capable of finding a breakthrough against a Liverpool team who have been so defensively fragile for much of the
Jemimah Rodrigues on Thursday hit an unbeaten 127 as India pulled off a record chase of 339 against Australia to set up a Women’s World Cup final against South Africa. Rodrigues and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, who hit 89, put on 167 runs for the third wicket as India won with nine balls and five wickets to spare at DY Patil Stadium, on the outskirts of Mumbai. The hosts finished on a total of 341-5 in reply to Australia’s impressive 338 and ensured there would be a new name on the 50-over trophy tomorrow. Amanjot Kaur hit the winning boundary to trigger wild celebrations
Jannik Sinner on Thursday eased past Francisco Cerundolo 7-5, 6-1 at the Paris Masters to set up a quarter-final clash with Ben Shelton, while reigning champion Alexander Zverev earned a straight-sets win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the third round. A maiden crown in the French capital would return Sinner to No. 1 in the world rankings after current incumbent Carlos Alcaraz suffered a shock early exit at the hands of Britain’s Cameron Norrie. The Italian four-time Grand Slam champion is yet to drop a set in the tournament as he hones in on what would be a fifth title of the
LOCAL SUCCESS: In the doubles, Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Italians Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini in straight sets Elena Rybakina on Monday punched her ticket to the WTA Finals last four with an impressive 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 victory over second seed Iga Swiatek in round-robin play in Riyadh. After cruising past Amanda Anisimova in her opener on Saturday, Rybakina claimed her second win of the week to guarantee herself top spot in the Serena Williams Group. Anisimova on Monday rallied back from a set and a break down to triumph 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in her all-American battle with seventh seed Madison Keys, who has been eliminated from the competition. “Madi was playing so well, it was quite a battle out there,”
RSS