Boycotting the Olympics=Chinas Kosovo?

[conspiracy analyst]

Bernard Kouchner (ex-Doctors without Borders now Foreign Minister of France I believe) of neo-con fame has called for a Boycott of the Beijing Olympics.


Who needs unrest in Tibet?
20:50 | 19/ 03/ 2008



MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti international commentator Ivan Zakharchenko) -Tibetans trying to preserve their culture and traditions deserve respect, but that can hardly justify the recent unrest in Lhasa and other Chinese cities. The recent unrest was obviously a case of inter-ethnic strife.

Tibetans were simply beating the Chinese who recently moved to the region. These are ethnic Chinese of the Han ancestry, which form the majority of the population in China. It was strange to read world media reports about peaceful demonstrations by monks, which nonetheless left behind destroyed shops and cars.

When similar riots took place in the suburbs of Paris, nobody called them peaceful demonstrations. A CNN blog quoted a young woman as saying that she landed in the hospital after being beaten by a crowd of Tibetans just for being a Chinese.

The Chinese Xinhua news agency reported 13 deaths and about 300 local fires due to the unrest. The Dalai Lama's supporters claim that eighty have died and 72 have been wounded.

Passive on-lookers always have their likes and dislikes. Many Western politicians have called on the Chinese authorities to display restraint, but nobody has urged Tibetans to stop beating the Chinese.

With Hollywood's help, Tibet has long had a reputation of a magical land, a dream for lovers of exotic destinations and a place where one can reach "spiritual enlightenment." In Western mentality, this benevolent stereotype contrasts with Chinese communist ideology.

The Tibetan separatists are seeking independence from China. Beijing considers the exiled Dalai Lama a separatist as well. He is the Tibetan spiritual leader and enjoys high prestige among the Buddhists all over the world. He says that he is not striving for Tibet's independence, but for broad autonomy, but Beijing finds it difficult to understand the existence of the Tibetan government in exile. The Dalai Lama has promised to resign as its head if the riots continue, and urged both the authorities and Tibetans to avoid violence.

Until recently, the government in exile did not disassociate itself from the violent actions by the radicals, which reaffirmed Beijing's apprehensions.

Gennady Chufrin, deputy director of the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO) at the Russian Academy of Sciences, expressed the following view: "Although the Dalai Lama does not demand independence, his supporters include radicals who are largely responsible for making the dialogue with the Chinese authorities impossible."

The Dalai Lama is an old man. By tradition, after his death a successor to his position is chosen by searching for his reincarnation among newborn babies. However, the press reported last November that the Dalai Lama suggested a referendum on changing the age-old ritual, and allowing the incumbent to choose his successor.

Some experts believe that using his religious authority in the world, the Dalai Lama has gone beyond spiritual leadership, and taken an active role in politics. They see this as the root of the problem.

Recent unrest in Tibet has come as a surprise to many analysts. In the last few years, the Chinese government has invested huge funds into the Tibet Autonomous Region; it has conducted talks with the Dalai Lama's envoys, and given many freedoms to the Buddhist clergy.

There are two factors that may explain why the riots have taken place now - the Beijing Olympics in August, and the unilateral declaration of Kosovo's independence. For many years, the Western-supported Albanian separatists were fighting for the cessation of this province with the now predominantly Albanian population from Serbia. Recently, Kosovo has been recognized by the United States, United Kingdom, and some other Western countries.

Knowing that Beijing cannot afford any aggravations on the eve of the Olympics, the Tibetan separatists might have also used anti-Chinese attitudes for staging riots. Some observers believe that the recent violence in Tibet was provoked in order to fan up inter-ethnic strife in China and emphasize its problems before the Olympics.

There is one more factor - the Taiwanese presidential elections slated for March 22, and a referendum on the self-governed island's entry into the United Nations as an independent state. Presidential nominees are already using the Tibetan situation in their election campaigns.

But no provocation would have worked if everything in Tibet were in order. Recently, this henceforth deserted Himalayan region has been flooded by Han people that are good at sales and business. This may have caused discontent of the local population and resulted in the periodic attacks on the newcomers, but this situation is typical not only for China.

Alexander Larin, a leading research fellow at the Institute of Far Eastern Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted the importance of the fact that Beijing has allowed national minorities to freely perform their religious rites, and promoted the economic development of this mountainous region. He believes that the recent outbreak of violence could have been caused by some difficulties in relations between the local authorities and the Tibetan population, mostly monks.

Lack of information makes it difficult to be more specific. Foreign access to information is very limited; the authorities have blocked many Tibetan web sites for fear that some imprudent reports may further escalate the violence.

The Chinese government has emphasized that the police and the army have not used force against the rioters; some monks deliberately wounded each other and then took photos to stir a sensation. Usually, such pictures produce the desired effect.

Although the situation in Tibet is difficult, experts believe that it will not spiral out of control, and that the Chinese government will find a way of settling it before the Olympics.

The opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.

http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20080319/101735926.html

[conspiracy analyst]

Who are the Reporters without Borders group that unhurled banners in Greece for Tibet during the handing over ceremony?

Part of the Soros Open Society media outlets the world over?

http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=21&ItemID=14257

[conspiracy analyst]

Clinton urges Bush to boycott Beijing Olympics
Mon Apr 7, 2008 7:43pm
1 of 7Full SizeVideo
Clinton tries to move past missteps


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton urged President George W. Bush on Monday to boycott the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies this summer unless China improves human rights.

Clinton, in a statement, cited violent clashes in Tibet and the lack of pressure by China on Sudan to stop "the genocide in Darfur."

"At this time, and in light of recent events, I believe President Bush should not plan on attending the opening ceremonies in Beijing, absent major changes by the Chinese government," the New York senator said.

Bush plans to attend the Summer Olympics ceremonies in Beijing in August and so far has resisted pressure to change his plans in response to a violent crackdown against protesters in Tibet by Chinese authorities.

China has also been accused of refusing to use its influence on the Sudanese government to get it to stop what the United States calls a genocide in the Darfur region.

Clinton has gone a step further than U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California who last week urged Bush to keep the option of boycotting the ceremonies on the table.

"I encourage the Chinese to take advantage of this moment as an opportunity to live up to universal human aspirations of respect for human rights and unity, ideals that the Olympic games have come to represent," Clinton said.

Speaking before Clinton's statement was released, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said that, "We have a great deal of concern about human rights in China."

"We have never been afraid to express those views," he said.

He said the Bush administration expects American athletes to participate in the Olympics.

(Reporting by Steve Holland and Toby Zakaria,

[xmasdale]

Boycott Olympic ceremonies

Athletes urged to wear Tibetan flags

London – 7 April 2008

"Politicians and athletes from all countries should boycott the
opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. Athletes
should wear Tibetan flags when they compete in their events and when
they stand on the podium to collect their medals."

This call comes from human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who was
briefly arrested in Oxford Street yesterday when he ran in front of
the bus bearing the Olympic torch and held up a placard reading: "Free
Tibet, Free Hu Jia."

"China should be subjected to sporting protests in the same way that
there were sporting protests against apartheid South Africa," added Mr
Tatchell.

"It is hypocritical for Gordon Brown to boycott the Zimbabwean regime,
but not the dictatorial regime in China. Greeting the Olympic torch at
Downing Street was a big mistake.

"Neither the UK not any other democracy should collude with a police
state like China. Attempts to persuade the Beijing leaders to stop
their human rights abuses have failed. They are manipulating the
Olympics. We must not allow the regime to exploit the Beijing games to
boost its credibility and to divert attention from its systematic
violations of human rights.

"The jailing last week of Chinese human rights campaigner Hu Jia is
proof that China is not improving its human rights record, as it
promised it would when it was granted Olympic host nation status.

"Hu Jia was sentenced to three and a half years imprisonment for
campaigning for free speech, Tibetan autonomy, environmental
protection, and for the human rights of the rural poor and people with
HIV.

"Gordon Brown shamed himself and Britain by greeting the Olympic torch
at Downing Street, at a time when China is shooting dead Tibetan
protesters and jailing and torturing hundreds of political prisoners.

"As well as its oppression in Tibet, China is one the world's most
vicious anti-worker regimes. It has poor labour laws. Employees have
little protection against abuse. Independent trade unions are banned
and their leaders jailed.

"To make way for new cities, millions of rural people have been forced
off their land with little or no compensation. China is free market
state capitalism at its worst. The gap between the rich and poor is
one of the widest of any country on earth.

"The idea that China is any longer a communist state is laughable. The
Communist Party has become a new ruling class and a route to personal
advancement, corruption and wealth aggrandisement.

"The Beijing leaders are new emperors who ride roughshod over their
own people. They have almost total power and they abuse it to oppress
and exploit the Chinese nation, often in ways similar to the old
feudal and colonial powers of the nineteenth century," said Mr
Tatchell.

Background information on Hu Jia:

"Hu Jia exposed the Chinese government's cover up of the use of HIV
contaminated blood, the lack of support and care for people with HIV,
and he challenged social prejudice and discrimination against people
with the virus," added Mr Tatchell.

"He is a truly heroic figure, who has shown immense determination and
bravery; having continued campaigning, even though he knew it would
put him at risk of arrest, torture and imprisonment.

"In jail, Hu Jia is likely to be mistreated, starved of proper food
and denied medical treatment for his hepatitis B infection," said Mr
Tatchell.

For more information about Hu Jia, see here:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/hu-jia-chinas-enemy-withi n-804589.html

http://www.rfa.org/english/news/2006/03/29/china_hujia/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hu_Jia_(activist)