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China, Olympics & Repression: An Amnesty Report
“It is increasingly clear that much of the current wave of repression (in Tibet) is occurring not in spite of the (Beijing) Olympics but actually because of the Olympics,” says a recent Amnesty International report. The group also called on world leaders to speak out on the situation in Tibet, calling a failure to address the issue tacit ‘endorsement’ of human rights abuses.
President George W. Bush has said he plans to attend the ceremony but Germany’s Angela Merkel says she will not. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has not ruled out a boycott. An IOC team is currently in Beijing to assess its readiness for the Games.
Meanwhile Voice of America reports that two US lawmakers — Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher of California and Democrat Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii — plan to co-chair a caucus to help mobilize support for Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, and to bring attention to China’s rule over the Tibetan people. More here…
