A couple times in the last month, I have caught the Olympic trials on TV–great stuff, really, and in HD if you can get it. I also go running by the Chinese embassy in Washington D.C., and maybe it is just a coincidence, but lately I have seen a lot more diplomatic security parked outside. It would be nice if the two things were unrelated, if I could enjoy the Olympic pomp without thinking about all the people with reason to protest outside the embassy. But alas, I’m not sure I can.
Today’s Washington Post has a dispatch from Jill Drew about the “dozens of Chinese writers and lawyers who have been convicted, detained, placed under house arrest, tailed or otherwise harassed as part of China’s broad crackdown on dissent in the run-up to the Olympic Games in Beijing next month.” The article includes the story of Huang Qi, a journalist who was arrested for, among other things, publishing stories on his website about the shoddy school construction that led to the death of 9,000 children during the May 12 earthquake. Huang’s colleague on the website, Pu Fei, was also detained. Then it gets creepy, eye-drop-Clockwork-Orange creepy:
After three days in a detention chamber, Pu was moved to what looked to be a hotel room at a resort, he said, with a single bed and an attached bath. At least two guards were in the room with him at all times. He was allowed to shower and sleep, but his food was limited — only two steamed buns a day, with water. The guards prevented Pu from looking out the window. He was told to read the Communist Party-run newspaper, People’s Daily, and forced to watch an endless loop of propaganda video showing people the government considers heroes rescuing earthquake victims. . . . Pu’s captors read, played games and listened to music, he said; he was stuck watching the video. They told him it was a “law study seminar” intended to correct his misconceptions about the law, Pu said.
Such repression is not new to China, but the article makes the case that the recent crackdown is directly tied to the Olympics. That makes it part of the Olympic story. And it should not be lost in the coverage of the medal frenzy, especially by the excellent news staff at NBC, the network which holds the honor of broadcasting the Olympic games this year.
UPDATE: Per a commenter request, McCain’s and Obama’s positions on China and the Olympic games can be found after the jump. (Both say Bush should reconsider his decision to attend the opening ceremonies.)
Another UPDATE: For more on the China/Olympic conundrum, see this post by Simon Elegant at TIME’s own China Blog. “What about the human rights and general openness that were supposed to have been enhanced by the awarding of the Games? It hardly needs to be said that the exact opposite happened and most dissenting voices have either been jailed or intimidated into silence. Same goes for the promised greater media freedom, as Human Right Watch have pointed out in their latest report. (Here with proxy or VPN if inside the Wall), China’s Forbidden Zones.”
Here is McCain from an April 2008 press release:
“I believe President Bush should evaluate his participation in the ceremonies surrounding the Olympics and, based on Chinese actions, decide whether it is appropriate to attend. If Chinese policies and practices do not change, I would not attend the opening ceremonies. It does no service to the Chinese government, and certainly no service to the people of China, for the United States and other democracies to pretend that the suppression of rights in China does not concern us. It does, will and must concern us.”
Here is the Obama statement from around the same time:
“If the Chinese do not take steps to help stop the genocide in Darfur and to respect the dignity, security, and human rights of the Tibetan people, then the President should boycott the opening ceremonies. As I have communicated in public and to the President, it is past time for China to respect the human rights of the Tibetan people, to allow foreign journalists and diplomats access to the region, and to engage the Dalai Lama in meaningful talks about the future of Tibet. I am also deeply concerned about China’s failure to support efforts to halt the genocide in Darfur. Regarding the Beijing Olympics this summer, a boycott of the opening ceremonies should be firmly on the table, but this decision should be made closer to the Games.”