Abandon the Winter Olympics - Our Country

– It is not possible to distinguish between politics and sport. China is not interested in winning medals at the Winter Olympics, but in promoting its political and economic interests, Petter Eide (SV) told Vårt Land.

He is Parliamentary Representative for Oslo and previously served as Secretary General of Amnesty Norway, Care International Norway and Norwegian People’s Aid. Norway is committed to intervening in human rights violations in all countries, he said.

“It concerns all of us as human beings,” he said.

AWARENESS: The current boycott debate is important because it leads to greater awareness of the challenges in these countries, says Petter Eide (SV) (Vidar Ruud / NTB)

Ask the royal family to stay home

Eide believes the royal family shouldn’t be visiting China.

“They have no reason to legitimize China’s cruel policies and be used by their propaganda,” he said.

Vårt Land has asked the royal family to comment on Eide’s request, but Sven Gjeruldsen, the palace’s deputy director of communications, says the royal family does not have an opportunity to comment.

In addition, he believes that Norway should follow the decisions of other Western countries.

– We should vote so that the Winter Olympics are not used as an arena for diplomacy and economics. Whether this government or the new one after the elections can go, says Eide.

EU and UK opt for political boycott

Last week, the British Parliament passed a non-binding resolution for a political boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in China, a week after European Parliament (PE).

– A resolution expresses the opinion of the EP. The fact that it is not binding on EU Member States means that there is formally no way for the EP to sanction the European Commission, the EU Council or the Member States if they choose to ignore the content of this resolution, said Bjørn Høyland, UiO professor of political science.

Bjørn Høyland, political science at UiO — NO CONSEQUENCE: There are no legal consequences if the resolution is ignored, says Bjørn Høyland, professor of political science at UiO. (UI)

He adds that the EP can always follow up with the committee and the council with follow-up questions, but it will have no legal consequences if the resolution is ignored, says Høyland, who is an expert in the European Parliament.

Parliament resolution calls on all members of the government and European diplomats to reject invitations to the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022 until the Chinese government improves the human rights situation in Hong Kong, Xinjiang , Tibet, Inner Mongolia and other parts of China.

“We should not go for something that can normalize what is happening in China,” said Tim Loughton, a representative of the Conservative Party in Britain. Nikkei Asia.

He thinks that if more Western buyers go in the same direction, it will push other countries to follow.

The Canadian parliament earlier this year passed a resolution accusing China of genocide of the Uyghur people. In the resolution, they also call for the Winter Olympics to be moved to another country.

A Uyghur hawker waits for customers near a Beijing Olympics billboard showing the Bird Nest National Stadium in Kashgar, west China's Xinjiang Province, Tuesday, August 5, 2008. The attack on two Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic group, killing 16 police officers on Monday sparked a full security alert in the troubled Muslim territory just days before the Olympics. (AP Photo / Ng Han Guan) — UIGUR: A uihur salesperson is expecting customers. It got even worse for the country’s minorities after the Summer Olympics in China, says Petter Eide (SV). (Ng Han Guan / AP)

Politicization of sport, according to China

The challenge of boycotting the British Parliament is obviously the politicization of sport, responds Chinese Embassy in London. This is contrary to the Olympic ideal and the Olympic movement, they believe, and it is disrespectful to British athletes and other athletes around the world:

– We are strongly opposed to such irresponsible behavior, the embassy said in a statement.

The United States accused China of genocide of the Uyghur people in the Xinjiang region earlier this year. China has denied allegations of human rights violations in the region. Chinese authorities are not allowing UN officials who will investigate the allegations to visit the region.

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2022 Winter Olympics

This will be the 24th Olympic Winter Games and will be held in Beijing from February 4 to 20, 2022.
This is the first time that a city has had to host both the Summer and Winter Olympics.
The 2008 Summer Olympics were also held in Beijing.
More than two-thirds of athletes support the IOC’s ban on demonstrating in the arena or at medal ceremonies during the Beijing Olympics, reports the IOC.
The US Olympic and Paralympic Committees have said they will not punish athletes who respectfully demonstrate during the Games.

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Democratic leader: let’s not honor China

The AFP news agency writes that a growing number of US politicians have spoken out in favor of boycotting the Winter Olympics in China. Last month, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Olympics.

“Let us not honor the Chinese government by letting heads of state go to China,” she said.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Greets a crime victim funding registration bill at the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday, July 21, 2021. Earlier, Pelosi rejected two Republicans , Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., who were chosen by GOP House Leader Kevin McCarthy to serve on a committee investigating the 6 January. (AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite) — GOVERNMENTS: Let’s not honor the Chinese government by letting heads of state visit China, said Nancy Pelosi, head of the House of Representatives.
(J. Scott Applewhite / AP)

The administration of President Joe Biden has refused for several months to comment on a possible boycott. Republicans support the boycott.

Right: everyone

Michael Tetzschner, Conservative Party spokesperson for foreign policy and deputy chairman of the Storting’s foreign affairs committee, believes that each politician decides for himself.

– I have sympathy for the royal family or the politicians who say no to the invitations to the Winter Olympics in China. Still, we don’t need to have a political decision on this, he told Vårt Land.