Free....are we???

I was writing about the difficult astrological configurations for China later this month, and how the Olympic games seem feted to occur in the shadow of a more difficult or cataclysmic event, of course all of this is conjecture based upon a number of factors; the accuracy of information received and the interpreter’s (in this case me) ability. Watch for it in the news anyhow and see…

Only I won’t be watching the games…the Olympic Games after all were set up with an ethos based upon human rights and mutual respect, justice and understanding.

The Modern International Olympic Movement, says it aims at practically implementing the Olympic Ideals. These are to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by (to quote the IOC) ‘educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind, and in the Olympic spirit which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.’

According to this philosophy, sportsmanship, a sense of fair play, and respect are developed through participation in world sports, teaching men and women of different races, religions, and nationalities to work peacefully together toward common goals. Ostensibly the Olympic Movement works to expand such lessons beyond the sports arena in the hope of promoting peace and a sense of brotherhood throughout the world. The Movement's ideals are practiced in other ways than sporting competition, including the promotion of environmental issues, fighting drug use among athletes, and providing financial and educational aid.

Hmm…..this gets me thinking and thinking and thinking…..and no matter how hard I try I come up with the same answers……China is one of the world’s worst greenhouse gas Offenders ……how is giving them the Honour of holding the games promoting environmental issues (and what about deforestation and damming the Yangtze etc etc)……China has a contemporary and chequered history of human rights abuses…what do the Olympic committee believe they said about this in giving China the Games….am I crazy or do the games in Beijing seem somewhat hypocritical to the Olympic ideals and ethos????

When the International Olympic Committee assigned the 2008 summer Olympic Games to Beijing on 13 July 2001, it was said that there was a hope this would encourage China to improve the status of their human rights issues…perhaps China misunderstood exactly what this meant…improve…I guess it is a matter of what you see as an improvement! The then Vice-President Hu Jintao (now president) shortly after the announcement of the Games in Beijing, argued ‘that after the Beijing “triumph,” it was “crucial to fight without equivocation against the separatist forces orchestrated by the Dalai Lama and the world’s anti-China forces.” And In the west of the country, where there is a decent Muslim minority, the authorities in Xinjiang province executed Uyghurs for “separatism.” Falun gung followers are imprisoned and tortured and there is even talk of organ harvesting from these prisoners....

Instead of the games helping to prevent human rights abuse it seems they have increased them. Chinese police have intensified their crackdown on subversive elements, including Internet users and journalists. The government blocks access to news websites. It jams the Chinese, Tibetan and Uyghur-language programmes of 10 international radio stations. China’s blog services incorporate filters that block keywords considered “subversive” by the censors. The Chinese law severely punishes “divulging state secrets,” “subversion” and “defamation”. Although the rules for foreign journalists have been eased, it is still impossible for the international media to employ Chinese journalists or to move about freely in Tibet and Xinjiang. And of course there has been China’s failure to use its influence in the Sudan to stop the genocide in Dafur.

This being the case, how could I watch such a travesty as the Olympic Games of Beijing??

China has in its wisdom been for many years since the coming of communism to that country, a citadel for lack of freedom, of thought, of speech and just about everything else. The Chinese government has sold out on its own people, its own unique culture, its own spirituality….in the name of communism it has been party to untold atrocities both physical and mental. We have also witnessed (and failed to act upon) the desecration of a country, its culture and its spirituality, in the case of Tibet. One wonders how quick we are to act when other countries with resources we want are involved in the violation of human rights, and how quick we are to ignore same if there is nothing for us to gain as a result, other than of course the knowledge that we have helped to stand up for basic human dignity.
Oh well…..and I say we unfortunately because largely the western world is party to this and Australians have a sad habit of imitating their Big Brother America….manipulated as easily as the folk on the TV show of the same name.


Most countries are reluctant to openly defy the economic Stronghold that is China. China has not been known to give leeway on these matters. It is not likely to forget the countries that have boycotted and there is likely to be a price to pay…..so have we relinquished our freedoms to China too….are we part of the free world or not…I for one am free…free to turn the telly off….oh and what about the athletes…..they are free too, to put whatever they feel is most important first….the Olympic ideal, or the poor decisions of the Olympic committee or the sport or their possible personal gain from the exercise or…..it is not mine to judge only theirs to enact…I have always said to my kids it is not the decisions you make I care about but the reasons why…you should always know the reasons why…