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The 2022 Winter Olympics will be held in Beijing
Photo: David J. Phillip / dpa
A good two weeks before the start of the Winter Olympics in Beijing (February 4 to 22), human rights activists have criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the inadequate protection of athletes from Chinese censorship laws.
At a briefing by the organization "Human Rights Watch", Rob Koehler, general director of the athletes' association Global Athlete, called on the umbrella organization to communicate clearly how athletes should be protected.
Inquiries about this have remained unanswered in the past few days.
"Silence is complicity," criticized Koehler.
Fear of arbitrariness
The statutes of the IOC state that expressions of opinion must be in accordance with "applicable law" - in China, however, critical words could quickly become criminal offenses.
"Chinese laws are very vague," said Human Rights Watch researcher Yaqiu Wang.
For example, the criminal offenses »provoking riots« or »inciting a coup« could be applied to unwelcome critics.
American cross-country skier Noah Hoffman said the United States is already shielding its Olympians from questions because of safety concerns: »That makes me angry.
I fear for their safety if they go to China.«
China is repeatedly accused of human rights violations internationally.
The authoritarian state has been criticized for its treatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority and its policies towards Hong Kong, Taiwan and Tibet.
The Peng Shuai case had recently caused a stir in the sports world: the tennis player had made a sexual relationship with a former senior government official public on social media, wrote about abuse and then disappeared from public view for several weeks.
Before the games in China, the IOC confirmed that athletes are not restricted in their freedom of expression if they want to comment on the host country in interviews or on social media.
The controversial Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter previously banned this, but had already been relaxed ahead of the 2021 Summer Games in Tokyo.
Political statements are also prohibited during the official ceremonies, during the competitions and in the Olympic Village.
cev/ap