Topline
Hundreds of people in several countries on Friday protested against China’s repression of its Muslim Uyghur minority and Tibetans as the Beijing Winter Olympics kicked off amid diplomatic boycotts over China’s human rights record.
People protest against the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in front of Chinese Embassy in Istanbul, … [+]
Key Facts
In Istanbul, Turkey—home to the largest Uyghur diaspora outside Central Asia—hundreds of Uyghurs on Friday called for a boycott of the Winter Games and for athletes to speak out about China’s abuse against Uyghurs in the western region of Xinjiang, chanting, “China stop the genocide,” Reuters reported.
Hundreds of Tibetans protested near the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi, India, on Friday, denouncing the holding of the Winter Games in China and calling for Tibet to be free from Beijing’s control, with some carrying signs reading, “Say No To Genocide Games,” the Associated Press reported.
There are many Tibetan exiles in India since religious leader the Dalai Lama was forced to flee to India from Tibet after a failed Tibetan uprising in 1959.
Around 20 protesters, including Uyghurs and Tibetans, rallied near the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo on Friday morning before the opening ceremony, calling out Beijing’s human rights violations against Uyghurs and in Hong Kong and the Tibet Autonomous Region, Japan’s national broadcaster NHK reported.
Ahead of the opening ceremony for the Winter Games, hundreds of Tibetan and Uyghur activists gathered in front of the International Olympic Committee headquarters in Switzerland on Thursday, protesting against the IOC’s decision to award the Winter Olympics to Beijing despite human rights issues, Reuters reported.
Chinese troops seized control of Tibet in the early 1950s, a move that Beijing claims was a “peaceful liberation,” but that many exiled Tibetans say was the beginning of decades of religious repression and a wiping out their culture.
Big Number
Two million. That’s the number of Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities that the U.S. State Department says the Chinese government has detained in re-education camps in Xinjiang since 2017. The region is home to around 12 million Uyghurs, and minorities there are subjected to forced labor. China has denied allegations of forced labor or repression of ethnic minorities.
Key Background
One of the two Chinese athletes that lit the cauldron in the final moments of the Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics was a cross-country skier with Uyghur heritage. The New York Times called Beijing’s choice a “provocative ending” to the Opening Ceremony as a number of countries—the U.S., Denmark, Australia, the U.K., Canada, Japan and India—chose not to send a government delegation to the Games due to human rights concerns
Tangent
Hong Kong police arrested a 75-year-old veteran Hong Kong activist on Friday on suspicion of inciting subversion, days after he said he would protest the Beijing Games over the government’s tightening control of Hong Kong, the AP reported. China implemented a highly controversial national security law in Hong Kong in 2020 following massive pro-democracy protests in the city. More than 150 people have been arrested under the law, which has made it easier for authorities to crack down on activists and protesters.
Further Reading
In a provocative ending, China picks an athlete with Uyghur heritage to help light the cauldron. (New York Times)
Putin Meets Xi In Show Of Unity Amid Tensions With West—Here’s What They Discussed (Forbes)
Putin And Mohammed Bin Salman Among Key Foreign Attendees At Beijing 2022 Opening Ceremony Amid Western Boycott (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lisakim/2022/02/04/hundreds-worldwide-protest-chinas-human-rights-abuses-as-beijing-winter-olympics-kick-off/