(Washington) The United States will organize a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing to protest China’s human rights violations, the White House confirmed on Monday. Beijing had promised before the announcement to retaliate with “firm countermeasures”.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said athletes from the United States will compete and “they will have it all. [leur] support, ”but added,“ We will not be contributing to the Games fanfare. ”
“We have a fundamental commitment to promote human rights. And we firmly maintain our position and we will continue to take measures to advance human rights in China and elsewhere, ”Mr.me Psaki at a press briefing, Monday.
American athletes would still go to the Games as part of such a move President Joe Biden referred to last month.
This “diplomatic boycott” means that Washington will not send American dignitaries to attend the Beijing Games.
Mr. Biden will host a “summit for democracy” at the White House Thursday and Friday, a virtual gathering of leaders and civil society experts from more than 100 countries. The Biden administration said the president intended to use the meeting “to announce individual and collective commitments, reforms and initiatives to defend democracy and human rights at home and abroad. “.
In Ottawa, wait and see
Canadian Sports Minister Pascale St-Onge reiterated on Monday that Canada had not made its nest, in much the same words as last week. “Canada remains concerned about the human rights situation in China. We are still in discussions with our allies, and for the moment, there is no decision yet, ”she offered during a brief scrum before question period in the House. “This is not a decision that we will take lightly”, she added before reiterating that her “concern” remained the safety of the athletes, without specifying with which allies the Canadian government is in talks.
The Minister of Public Security, Marco Mendicino, for his part said that a diplomatic boycott was seriously considered.
We are very concerned about the situation in China. This is one of the options that the government will consider, and all human rights must be protected.
Marco Mendicino, Minister of Public Security
Hours earlier, Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole said a diplomatic boycott is the only logical option open to the Trudeau government. “This is an important question. This is something that has torn me apart because I have been discussing this with Canadian athletes for months on how we can express our deep disagreement with the Chinese regime without harming our athletes. […] We have proposed to move the Games. The Trudeau government was not interested in doing this. We have proposed a diplomatic boycott. I believe this is the best thing we can do with our allies. It is a way of exerting pressure, without our athletes paying the price, ”said the Conservative leader.
In Washington, on Capitol Hill, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Democrat Robert Menendez, called such a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games as “a necessary step to demonstrate [l’]unwavering commitment to human rights in the face of unacceptable abuses by the Chinese government ”.
He called “other allies and partners who share [leurs] values to join the United States in this diplomatic boycott ”.
“Demagoguery”, considers Beijing
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian on Monday accused American politicians of demagoguery by leaving open the possibility of not sending dignitaries to the Games that China wants to use as a showcase to showcase its economic development and its technological advances.
Speaking to reporters as part of his daily press briefing, Zhao said such a move by the Americans would be considered “pure and simple political provocation”, without giving further details on how the China could respond.
According to many rights activists, the Chinese regime is using the Olympics to distract from its mistreatment of its political opponents, ethnic minorities and Chinese human rights activists.
“Without even being invited, American politicians continue to make a big splash with their so-called diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics, when it is only wishful thinking and demagoguery,” commented Mr. Zhao to the media on Monday. “If the United States wants to take its own path, China will take strong countermeasures,” he warned.
Sending delegations of important representatives to each edition of the Olympics is a long-standing tradition observed by the United States and many other nations. George W. Bush had also attended the Summer Olympics in Beijing in 2008. Earlier this year, the first lady, Jill Biden, was at the head of the American delegation to the Games in Tokyo.
The announcement of a diplomatic boycott comes as the United States seeks to stabilize its turbulent relationship with China. The two states maintain economic friction and disputes over China’s attitude towards Taiwan, Hong Kong and control of the South China Sea.
Beijing systematically denounces all American critics, qualifying them as interference in its internal affairs and imposing visa bans on American politicians who are “anti-China”.
It was not clear who the United States could have sent to Beijing for the Games, and Zhao’s comments seem to indicate that China had not issued any invitations.
Australia, whose ties with China have crumbled over a series of disputes, also raised the possibility of a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Games.
With information provided by Mélanie Marquis and Joël-Denis Bellavance, from the La Presse office in Ottawa.