The 2022 Winter Olympics have finally kicked off on February 4th in Beijing, China. Following the success of the 2008 Summer Olympics, this ought to have been a joyous occasion for China but instead, the Winter Olympics and its host country have become embroiled in controversy surrounding their cost, the situation with COVID-19, censorship and above all, the human rights issues.

Controversy

To many spectators it seems almost bizarre that the Games have taken place at all, due to what the combination of rising global Covid cases and the emergence of the Omicron variant means for zero-Covid policy China. But more importantly, it is the human rights situation that has led people to oppose the Winter Games vehemently. Indeed, there has been no shortage of intense western criticism of China over human rights violations, ranging from the mass persecution of Uyghurs in Xinjiang (often known as the Uyghur Genocide) and other groups like the Tibetans, to the cracking down of Hong Kong’s freedoms.

Diplomatic Boycotts

The USA

On December 6th, it was announced by the USA that there would be a diplomatic boycott of the USA. The White House cited China's mistreatment of the Uyghur people as the reason for the boycott, condemning the "ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang”. US athletes will still be allowed to compete in the Olympics, but there will not be government officials sent to the games. The same policy applies for the 2022 Paralympic Games, which are also taking place in Beijing. The White House said it stopped short of a full boycott as "it would not be fair to punish athletes who have trained for years".

Australia

Just a day after the US’ diplomatic boycott, Australia also announced their plans to boycott the Winter Olympics and Canberra has refused to sign the Olympic Truce for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Similarly, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison also cited “human rights abuses” as the main reason for doing so and further went on to state that the decision was "in Australia's national interest," and that it is the "right thing to do."

India

A last-minute boycott from India was announced on the 3rd February 2022. Despite citing China’s human rights record as one of the main reasons behind this, Arindam Bagchi, a spokesperson of India's Ministry of External Affairs, also offered a different cause: the news that regimental commander Qi Fabao (who led the Chinese troops during skirmishes against Indian troops during the 2020 Galwan Valley clash) would be one of the torchbearers during the opening ceremony of the games. Following this news, the CEO of Prasar Bharati, India's public broadcaster, also announced that they will not air the 2022 Winter Olympics opening and closing ceremony.

Other countries who have boycotted the Olympics include: the United Kingdom, Canada, Latvia, Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands.

by Connie Kiew

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