Beijing Olympics-High on Promises, Low on Deliverables

Why The World Should Simply Just Say No To 2008 Beijing Olympics

When it comes to spending their Western earned dollars on infrastructure, China has done at best a mediocre job of fulfilling their commitments made to the IOC (International Olympic Committee), but when it comes to the intangibles, they get a failing grade all the way around.

China wants to strut its stuff like a proud peacock on the world stage, screaming to anyone that will listen, “LOOK AT US” as they excitedly point to their new highways, train lines and supposedly world-class stadiums. They steer reporters to their not quite completed airport, claimed to be the largest in the world, as proof positive that China is ready to welcome the world. (They are hoping for 500,000 visitors leading up to the Olympics, and this writer is hoping the number is far less.) In a tasteless show of new money largess, gaudy billboards compete with 1,000’s of newly planted trees for your attention, screaming out the Governmental Propaganda, “One World, One Dream”. In a nation known for human rights abuses, it is not surprising that China’s security system has passed muster with the FBI and Interpol.

Looking past the veneer of new buildings, stadiums and highways, the façade quickly fades as the world condemns China for suppressing Tibetan protests, their citizens in a rabid display of Nationalism demanding boycotts of various nations and companies for speaking their mind. (Think Jack Cafferty, Carrefour, CNN, BCC, France and the USA.) There are other serious issues that the IOC has done little too address, such as China’s sealing off from reporters major sections of the country in direct violation of China’s contractual agreements with the International Olympics governing body.

In winning the right to host the 2008 Beijing Olympics China pledged in 2002 to “be open in every respect” yet has just announced a two month Political Education Program (abuse and torture) in Tibet’s capital. At best, China has barely paid lip service to their pledge, trotting out Jiang Yu on an almost daily basis to deliver to the world media some driveling excuse for their acts of government sanctioned terrorist activities in Tibet, or worse delivering scathing missives that blame the world for not adequately protecting China’s beloved torch from hooligans, degenerative deviant protesters who, in China’s view, should be silenced, kept out of reach of the Torch Relay of Shame. China rather than honoring its pledge has chosen to lose face, choosing to continue violating human rights, rather than honor the sham 2004 Constitutional Amendment meant to protect human rights, meant to allow critics their freedom of speech.

Using ill gotten riches (think unfair trade practices), China has thrown billions of dollars at Beijing, dressing the city up like a two dollar whore, while ignoring intangible issues that run contrary to the Communist Government’s core interests, wrongfully assuming that glitz would appease the IOC as this secretive nation ignores pledges they are honor bound to keep. China’s intellectuals are stunned at the world’s reaction to the crack down in Tibet, had wrongfully assumed that their billions of dollars in infrastructure improvements would buy them a human rights FREE PASS for the Olympics, after which they could return to business as usual, imprisoning any of their citizens that got in the way of their great plan.

With just over three months before the opening ceremonies China has a long way to go and a short time to get there. The technical and strategic steps being implemented to improve the Beijing environment are questionable at best. When it comes to human rights and freedom of the world wide press during the Olympics, it seems a certainty that China is not going to come close to meeting their honor bound pledge to the IOC, and to the world.

The International Olympic Committee is not without fault, being far to concerned with nailing down lucrative contracts and endorsements, rather than keeping a close eye on China, pressing them much sooner to take the bold moves necessary to protect human rights, open China up (all sectors as promised) to the world wide press. As a result, there is a very real concern about Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Speech for both the athletes and visitors to the Beijing Olympic Games of Shame.

The IOC’s President, Jacques Rogge promises that athletes would be allowed to speak freely in Beijing’s Olympic venues rings hollow, and falls far short of China’s pledge. Will the athlete’s be allowed to speak freely while in China, rather than just in Olympic venues? What about the freedom of speech for the IOC’s visitors, the world citizens planning on attending the games in Beijing…has the IOC taken any steps to assure their rights? Olympic Historian David Wallechinsky is skeptical, says the IOC needed to be far more forceful, needed to take action much sooner than it has.

What Jacques Rogge does not want to admit, is he and the IOC were out foxed by China who made a honor bound pledge to improve human rights, but NEVER SIGNED A CONTRACT. In short, the IOC is standing in quicksand, powerless to demand necessary protections as they have nothing more than a moral commitment from China to improve human rights…you would think the president of the International Olympic Committee would know that such a pledge was only as good as the paper it was written on, especially when dealing with a deceitful and duplicitous nation like China. At this late stage in the game, short of taking the Olympics away, citizens and athletes of the world will attend the summer games at their own risk.