The IOC Becomes an Official Accomplice to the CCP in China

The China Teaching Web ^ | 07/31/2008 | Robert Vance

[robertvance]

If it was not already, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is now officially an accomplice to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and all of the Chinese government’s attempts to censor free speech and block personal freedoms in China. According to a report from Reuter’s on Wednesday, “some International Olympic Committee officials cut a deal to let China block sensitive websites despite promises of unrestricted access, a senior IOC official admitted on Wednesday.” Cut a deal? There was no deal. The IOC ‘rolled over and played dead’ just like it has been doing since it bestowed the Olympics upon Beijing 8 years ago. The IOC leadership has proved itself once again to be spineless; it might as well be just another arm of the CCP. The IOC has brought shame upon itself as well as upon the Olympic Games with the way in which it has allowed Beijing to censor free speech...

[robertvance]

The IOC should be ashamed of itself. Not only did it give China the Olympics but now it is bowing down to the CCP's every whim.

[Red Badger]

I predict this Olympics will be a disaster..................

[monday]

Members of the International Olympic Committee should be tared and feathered and run through Olympic village by the athletes. The whole affair should be televised globally. It's the only fair solution to their massive betrayal and stupidity.

[Mi-kha-el]

By not boycotting the Beijing Olympics, aren’t we becoming accomplice too? So, the indignation sounds a little hollow.

[robertvance]

I don’t think the American athletes should be brought into this. They are not in charge of running the Olympics; it is not their responsibility to hold Beijing to its Olympic promises. I know that President Bush has also received criticism for going but the fact is, he is planning once again on making the most out of the trip. He will be attending church in Beijing and using the opportunity to pressure Hu on human rights. Much more than the IOC is doing; that’s for sure.

[Mi-kha-el]

Shame it’s the end of the discussion. I have an interesting prospective to share.

[robertvance]

Who said it was the end of the discussion? Share! :)

[Mi-kha-el]

I agree that politics should not interfere with sports. However, this has not been the case for a while. Sports in countries like China is all about politics. I lived in the Sovit Union at the time of the 1880 Moscow Olympics, which, of course, was boycotted because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Some athletes snuck into the country and took part in the competitions, which was nice, but kind of legitimized the invasion and the Soviet regime, in general. Sports in the Soviet Union was also all about politics.